As with most airlines,

United Airlines’ livery has evolved over the years
and the airline has produced a number of special liveries from time to time to mark special occasions. While few United Airlines’

special liveries have been as dramatic as those of China United Airlines
, it has produced some notable special liveries
.

United’s Star Wars special livery

In October 2019, United announced it had teamed up with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and would unveil an all-new Star Wars-themed painted design on one of its Boeing 737-800
. The onboard experience was also Star Wars themed (e.g., its amenity kits, inflight safety demonstration video, and Star Wars theme music while boarding the aircraft).

The blue side of the special livery United Airlines

Photo: United Airlines

“The new paint design… captures the exotic atmosphere of the Star Wars galaxy and features imagery of famous Star Wars spacecraft, including the X-wing and TIE fighter starships. The aircraft’s tail starkly displays a different colored lightsaber – the weapon of the Jedi – against a black backdrop on each side, reflecting the two sides of the Force.” – United Airlines

United Airlines
stated that its special livery captured the exotic atmosphere of the Star Wars galaxy. The aircraft was painted black, featuring X-wing and TIE fighters, along with different-colored lightsabers on the tail. The right (or starboard) side of the aircraft featured the Sith red theme, with “United” painted red with a red lightsaber. The left (or port) side of the aircraft saw “United” in blue with a blue lightsaber reflecting the light or Jedi side of the Force.

United’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker special livery

Aircraft type:

Boeing 737-800

Registration:

N37262

Year:

2019-2020

United is not alone in its Star Wars-themed liveries. LATAM, ANA, and Virgin Atlantic have also previously featured liveries of the franchise.

United’s Eco-Skies special livery

While not nearly as eye-catching as United’s Star Wars livery, the eco-skies special livery is another notable United livery. It was a much more conservative livery that flew in 2018 and aimed to promote the development of sustainable aviation fuels. The text “eco-skies” was painted in green (eco) and blue (-skies) with a green left above the text. The winglets were also painted green.

United Boeing 737 in special Eco Skies livery

Photo: United Airlines

“The Eco-Skies Alliance program brings leading global corporations together with United to help them fly more sustainably. This partnership helps our corporate customers find ways to reduce their environmental impact by using sustainable aviation fuel.” – United Airlines

United’s eco-skies special livery

Aircraft type:

Boeing 737-900

Registration:

N75432

Year:

2018

United’s aircraft for this livery was a Boeing 737-900
(registered N75432), which was delivered in 2009 (and was initially operated by Continental Airlines
).

United’s goal to use sustainable aviation fuels

In 2021, United was reported to have been the first commercial passenger aviation company to fly a scheduled passenger aircraft using 100% sustainable fuels. It did this in partnership with Boeing, CFM International, Virent, and World Energy.

Sustainable aviation fuel emits up to 85% less carbon on a lifecycle basis – United

United says it wants to become “100% green by reducing our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 100% by 2050.” Key to this is the use of sustainable aviation fuel that can power existing aircraft without making significant modifications to the aircraft and its engines. However, there is a long way to go, as only a fraction of 1% of fuel is currently sustainable aviation fuel.

Other special United liveries

United has operated a number of other special liveries over the years and it is not possible to list them all out here. One notable one was the 2015-2017 “Friend Ship” livery painted on an Airbus A320-200
(Registered N475UA).

And then there was the 2015-2016 “March of Dimes” on a Boeing 737-900 aircraft (registered N66848). In honor of its 10-year partnership with the March of Dimes, United unveiled a specially painted commemorative aircraft featuring the March of Dimes livery on its rear fuselage and on its winglets.

United "March of Dimes" on a Boeing 737-900 aircraft

Photo: United Airlines

One of the most striking special liveries was from United’s “Her Art Here” program in 2019 (designed to highlight unrepresented female artists). In September 2019, United welcomed a one-of-a-kind livery into its fleet, which was designed by Corinne Antonelli and painted onto a Boeing 757. The livery featured iconic imagery from New York and New Jersey, including the historic Red Mill in New Jersey, the New York City skyline, and the Statue of Liberty, as well as a globe (which United says signals its worldwide connectivity). Another was unveiled with a special California scheme from a California-based female artist.

United’s Continental Airlines livery

Continental Airlines was a major US airline that operated from 1934 until its merger with United in 2012. The merged airline retained the United name, and in 2019, it changed its parent company name from United Continental Holdings to United Airlines Holdings. While one of the smaller major US airlines, it was known for its almost fancy service.

Continental Airlines Boeing 757

Photo: Eliyahu Yosef Parypa | Shutterstock

At the time of the merger, Continental operated an all-Boeing fleet made up of 350 aircraft. These were Boeing 737s, 757s, 767s, and 777s (with Boeing 787s on order). At the time, the average age of Continental’s fleet was 9.5 years old. Aircraft with Continental livery continued to operate with United until they were all repainted.

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