Written by Charlie Dolan

Now that I have had a chance to thoroughly clean, organize and paint my garage, I found time to rummage through my images of Canadian insignia. Some of these are from way back in time (Quebec Aviation Ltd.) or were so short lived (Air Niagara?) that there are no references to them in my usual sources. Or them I will have to rely on memory.

Air Niagara – This carrier came into Baltimore Int’l on a charter flight with a Convair 560. I was impressed that the wing insignia featured a plane resembling the Concorde. If you dream, dream big.

Canada 3000 – They had a good run until the terrorist activities caused many carriers to fold their wings.

HMY / Harmony – The airline was founded by a gentleman who was dissatisfied with the services provided by other carriers.

Intair  –  Provided charter and scheduled service with Convair 560 and Fokker 100 aircraft in eastern Canada. Intair was able to take over Nordair’s IATA code ND after Nordair was absorbed by Canadian Air Int’l.

Nationair Canada – Nationair operated from Montreal’s Mirabel Airport with charter service worldwide. A fatal Hadj charter accident at Jeddah brought Nationair’s maintenance practices into question. A lengthy strike by cabin staff affected operations adversely and the negative publicity about the quality of service led to the end of the carrier.

Odyssey International – This charter company was spun off from Soundair, a Canadian cargo carrier which had been operating since the late 1940s. After a very short period of operating, the mother company went bankrupt and Odyssey followed quickly

Quebec Airways Limited – Very little information about this airline, but impressive insignia.

This carrier used former military aircraft (C-46) carrying supplies to the DEW Line facilities in northern Canada. They also ran passenger flights to Cuba using Lockheed Constellations. The reason for the carrier’s demise was listed as “political”.

By Lane Kranz

Most junior wings are issued directly by airlines, however there is a unique niche category among junior wing collectors commonly referred to as Non-Airline Issued Junior Wings.  This category includes novelty junior wings sold in gift shops and toy stores and even premiums found in cereal boxes.  During the golden age of aviation, airline jobs including Pilots and Stewardesses (later known as Flight Attendants), were held in high regard.  These jobs were (and to some extent still are) highly sought-after.  Those that held these positions were looked up to by children and often considered ‘dream jobs’.  Marketing capitalized on this demand and the result is a very unique and valuable piece of history.

 

Gift Shop Junior Stewardess

There are 5 known wings of this particular style.  All are the same size and format and contain “Jr. Flight Stewardess” with the individual airline logo.  All wings are gold except for Western, which is silver.  The 5 known wings are:  Eastern, Western, Continental, Braniff and Pan Am (not pictured).  Based on the logo, these wings are believed to be from the mid 1940s to early 1950s.  If you are aware of any additional wings, other than the 5 mentioned, please contact me at the link below.

Kellogg’s Cereal Premiums

Perhaps the best known non-airline issued junior wings were those found in Kellogg’s Cereal boxes.  Each Kellogg’s box contained the phrase, “wear the wings of the famous pilots”.   Kellogg’s issued 6 Junior Wings in the USA, including Eastern, TWA, National, Northwest, Continental, and United.  Additionally, it is believed that Kellogg’s issued at least 1 Junior Wing in Canada from Canadian Pacific Airlines and likely others.  Please contact me at the link below if you know of any additional Kellogg’s wings. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Collector’s Buttons

Not much is known about the source of these buttons, however they are believed to be a gift shop or toy shop item.  All buttons are of identical size and feature the logo of 11 different US airlines and 1 Canadian airline.   All buttons contain “Jr. Flight Captain” except for Western Airlines which reads “Jr. Chief Pilot” and Pan Am which reads “Jr. Clipper Captain”.   If you have any additional information about these buttons, please contact me at the link below.  These buttons are believed to be from the early 1950s.

Big Wings

These large, brass wings are believed to be from a gift shop or toy store.  They feature a removable laminated center (about the size of a quarter) made of thin cardboard with a cellophane like covering.  There are 5 known airlines including:  Pan American, United, Western, Eastern, and TWA.  Based on the logo, these wings are believed to be from the late 1930s as Western Airlines was called Western Air Express until April 17, 1941.

Rings

Believe it or not, rings were a thing many decades ago.  Kids loved these!  There are multiple different styles, colors, and shapes.  These junior “rings” are believed to be from cereal boxes or candy machines.  Based on the logo, these are believed to be from the mid to late 1950s.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Written by Emma Rasmussen

In an age of endless white airline liveries (often referred to as “Eurowhite” schemes), the vibrantly colored liveries of decades past offer a louder and far-less subdued glance at airline marketing. Forgotten airlines such as AirCal and Pacific Southwest Airlines sported bright pinks,purples, yellows, and oranges in their cheat-lines throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Today,airlines tip their hats to fans of nostalgia by painting individual aircraft in their fleets to replicate
these retro schemes. However, few current liveries can compare to the vivid ones that preceded them.

Prior to the Eurowhite liveries that dominate the airline industry today, these brilliant schemes were extremely popular. Braniff International Airways, based out of Dallas Love Field Airport was hardly an exception. In 1965, Braniff introduced their “jelly bean” liveries, an array of solid-fuselage schemes that ranged from yellow to lavender, turquoise, green, blue, orange and several more. Eight years after the “End of the Plain Plane” campaign that saw this complete overhaul of the airline’s fleet, lounges, and uniforms, avant-garde artist Alexander Calder was asked to design three visually-adventurous schemes for Braniff.

Alexander Calder was an artist best known for his “mobiles,” kinetic sculptures. Alternatively, he produced paintings and miniatures. In the early 1970s, Braniff was celebrating twenty-five years of travel to South America and desired a scheme to reflect this. Alexander Calder was approached by Gordon and Shortt Advertising Agency, and was enticed by the thought of his artwork flying around the world on the largest canvas— an airliner. Calder’s first aircraft was a Douglas DC-8-62, which was painted in strictly primary colors and dubbed “With Flying Colors.” His debut livery is his most famous and appeared at the 1975 Paris Air Show.

After his success with the Douglas DC-8, Calder designed another livery for Braniff. In 1976, the United States was celebrating its 200th year, which prompted the airline to request another celebratory livery. Calder painted an abstract version of the American flag, which was transposed onto a Boeing 727-200. This second and final work of Calder’s was dubbed “Flying Colors of the United States.” On both of his aircraft, Calder’s signature is proudly displayed instead of typical Braniff branding.

Later in 1976, Alexander Calder died and ultimately put an end to the “Flying Colors” series of airline schemes. “The Spirit of Mexico” was to be his third and final work, but his passing caused the project to be scrapped. A second 727 never received this livery. In 1982, negatively affected by the 1978 Airline Deregulation Act, Braniff International Airways ceased operations. This once highly-profitable and fast-growing US airline filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, leaving dozens of “jelly bean” airliners stranded and a colorful career behind

Notice: This article was originally published in Horizons, online student paper of Embry Riddle- Prescott.