The design shortlist for Brussels Airlines’ next custom “Icon” livery has been released, and now it’s the public’s turn to choose the final five after a competition launched in August 2024 to find a new aircraft look.
The quest to join the Icon stable
The first round invited any Belgian citizen over the age of 16 to try their hand at creating the next Brussels Airlines “Icon” aircraft. Representing Belgium in an original and artistic way, and introducing the best of the country to the world, the Belgian Icons “fly all over the world and make flying even more fun,” the carrier says.
The carrier has already launched six “Icon” planes since 2015. Three of those, Magritte, Aerosmurf and Bruegel, are now retired. But the latest competition’s winner will help boost the numbers of Rackham, a Tintin-themed livery, Tomorrowland-inspired Amare, and the national football teams’ Trident.
Distinct, proud, and recognisable
By the first closing date of 27 September, 900 submissions from design hopefuls and aviation enthusiasts had been received. A jury has now selected a shortlist of 15, set to be whittled down to just a handful in the next phase of the competition, which sees the public choose the top five.
“We judged the designs based on some important criteria: the new Belgian icon must be different from all previous icons, it must be about something that all Belgians can be proud of and that is also recognised abroad,” says marketing director Michel Moriaux in a press release.
Saxophones, poppies and Art Nouveau
The design also “needed to meet certain standards of quality. We try to avoid clichés, as a Belgian Icon should invite people to explore and experience the richness of what Belgium has to offer,” Moriaux added.
The most popular categories for the submissions were cycling, Art Nouveau, artist Jean-Michel Folon, and saxophone inventor Adolphe Sax. Cartoon characters such as Lucky Luke and Marsupilami also feature in the top 15, alongside liveries representing the Ostend tradition of horseback shrimp-fishing, the great Belgian mind Mercator, and the poppies of Flanders Fields.
Join in the judging
To join in the fun of the judging, visit the Brussels Airline website, where the full shortlist of 15 can be viewed, and voting is open until 11 October. But don’t expect the choice to be easy. Describing the response to the competition as “overwhelming”, Moriaux thanked all the participants and said the airline “could make at least 100 new Belgian Icons with the ideas we received. The number of outstanding entries highlights the talent and creativity in Belgium and the many reasons we Belgians can take pride in our heritage.”
The public’s five favourites will then be presented to an external jury, comprising Hooverphonic’s Alex Callier and comic strip creator Philippe Geluck, among others, who will decide on the final design on 14 October. The general public though will have to wait until spring 2025 to see an aircraft sporting the winning design.
