“All liveries look the same nowadays” is a common lament amongst the world’s avgeeks. You may have noticed that most commercial aircraft feature predominantly white liveries with small areas of color, typically around the tail. It’s one of the reasons why special liveried aircraft are often amongst the most tracked on Flightradar24.
Why are aircraft predominantly white?

There are several reasons white is the preferred color for commercial aircraft. Let’s take a look at them. //

Breaking the mould completely, some operators have elected for a whole colour approach. Perhaps one of the most notable examples is Southwest Airlines (WN). The US low-cost carrier’s livery perhaps contains some of the lowest amount of white in the skies, showcasing the company’s blue, yellow and red brand colors across the entire fuselage.

In Europe, Icelandic carrier PLAY Airlines (OG) sports an all red/pink livery. Does this count as more white than Southwest? We’ll leave it to you to decide.

It is interesting to note that these liveries are more common amongst low-cost carriers, suggesting the value of showcasing a bold brand can outweigh the cost of more paint.