I’m going to have cataract surgery on my eyes. After this procedure, I will be forced to take time out to comply with medical prescriptions.
I won’t be able to work temporarily. I do not know how long the break will take. Therefore, I am making an offer to speed up to all those who have planned to place orders in the near future.
This applies only to new posters, as ready-made posters, as well as posters with personal titles, will still be available. My wife can handle this task. I will be accepting orders for new posters until June 5th, so that I can complete them before the operation.
I won’t be able to work temporarily. I do not know how long the break will take. Therefore, I am making an offer to speed up to all those who have planned to place orders in the near future.
This applies only to new posters, as ready-made posters, as well as posters with personal titles, will still be available. My wife can handle this task. I will be accepting orders for new posters until June 5th, so that I can complete them before the operation.
In the second half of June,
I will have to interrupt my work on the project
I will have to interrupt my work on the project
Poster for Aviators
Here you will get acquainted with my posters, which I drew and sent prints to pilots and fans of civil aviation around the world
Airliner Profile Scenic Posters are original artworks crafted for anyone eager to bring the spirit of aviation into their home or office, they demonstrate your connection to the boundless realm of heights and flight
Gift For Pilots
Our collection features a wide range of ready-made profiles of civil aircraft, adorned in liveries of airlines from across the globe, both modern and bygone. Dive into our blog, where stories of airlines and their winged machines come alive.
Every detail in our work reflects precision and realism, captured in lines and shades that embody the soul of flight.
Every detail in our work reflects precision and realism, captured in lines and shades that embody the soul of flight.
Want a unique backdrop? Order a custom airliner poster designed just for you. Seeking a personal gift? Add a custom inscription – a one-of-a-kind gesture for a friend or comrade.
Provide the aircraft’s registration number, and we’ll draw the very liner that lingers in your memory. Include a personal touch – a pilot’s name and rank, service dates, or a memorable flight route – and the poster’s title will make it truly yours.
Would you like your own poster?
Provide the aircraft’s registration number, and we’ll draw the very liner that lingers in your memory. Include a personal touch – a pilot’s name and rank, service dates, or a memorable flight route – and the poster’s title will make it truly yours.
Would you like your own poster?
Aviation, uniting the world
Aviaposter's collection
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A plane takes you where the roads end, into a freedom that smells of fuel and clouds
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aleksey@aviaposter.com
aleksey@aviaposter.com
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© 2014-2026 by Aleksey Rubtsov
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All right reserved
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Due to the complete blocking of payment systems in Russia, no payments are made from outside. The only way to buy these posters from outside Russia is to make a payment via a private link from my reliable intermediary through a payment service Revolut.me (any bank cards are accepted).
To make a purchase, select the poster (s) on my catalog, fill in all the fields in the shopping cart correctly. I will receive all data about your order and take you a payment link by email. After paying, I will ship your parcel and provide a track code. Since emails containing links to external resources often end up in spam, I ask you to check your spam folder to avoid this.
To make a purchase, select the poster (s) on my catalog, fill in all the fields in the shopping cart correctly. I will receive all data about your order and take you a payment link by email. After paying, I will ship your parcel and provide a track code. Since emails containing links to external resources often end up in spam, I ask you to check your spam folder to avoid this.
Unfortunately, everything in this world is subject to wear and tear. Sometimes things start to malfunction. They sputter, choke, and guzzle fuel. If the problem isn’t fixed in time, the consequences won’t be long in coming. After individual components and assemblies fail, the entire machine may break down.
But it’s not just airplanes that break down—human bodies do too. Mine is no exception. You’ve probably noticed my announcement on the website. My eyes are my working tool—the quality of my work depends on them. Lately, they’ve been letting me down. You might have noticed that I haven’t updated or drawn new models for a while. The ophthalmologist’s verdict, which I received recently, was unexpected. Cataracts in both eyes. I thought I’d just be prescribed new glasses and some vitamins. So, I’ll soon be undergoing double surgery, with a recovery period in between.
The website’s operation and catalog sales will continue. My wife handles these tasks excellently. Besides, if a custom header is needed, she’s no less competent in this than I am—perhaps even more so. I’ll always be around, but for a while, only with one working eye.
In any case, these are just temporary inconveniences. Afterward, everything will be even better.
But it’s not just airplanes that break down—human bodies do too. Mine is no exception. You’ve probably noticed my announcement on the website. My eyes are my working tool—the quality of my work depends on them. Lately, they’ve been letting me down. You might have noticed that I haven’t updated or drawn new models for a while. The ophthalmologist’s verdict, which I received recently, was unexpected. Cataracts in both eyes. I thought I’d just be prescribed new glasses and some vitamins. So, I’ll soon be undergoing double surgery, with a recovery period in between.
The website’s operation and catalog sales will continue. My wife handles these tasks excellently. Besides, if a custom header is needed, she’s no less competent in this than I am—perhaps even more so. I’ll always be around, but for a while, only with one working eye.
In any case, these are just temporary inconveniences. Afterward, everything will be even better.
About the upcoming break in work
What is there to read?
In the previous issue, I suggested that I would write a continuation about Landor’s work in aviation liveries. And here it is, already on the pages of our blog. This material covers only the most striking and well-known works of Landor Associates. Many liveries—famous and obscure, successful and (let's be honest) not to my taste—were left out. But all of them definitely deserve attention. Perhaps this will grow into more than one continuation, but sometime later. After all, I have materials on other aviation stories piling up, waiting for their turn to be published.
Sky as a Canvas. Part 2
Landor Associates and Aviation Branding
Landor Associates and Aviation Branding
These planes weren’t supposed to appear at All Nippon Airways. But it still happened. Three huge and rather "plump" Airbus A380s, nicknamed "Superjumbos" by the public. And what to do with them? Nevertheless, one route was found where they now work diligently.
They might have just become another type in ANA’s fleet, but the company’s creative approach made them iconic. All three planes have giant Hawaiian turtles painted on their fuselages. The giants immediately appeared on magazine covers; their photos quickly filled internet pages… Read more about this in our blog article.
They might have just become another type in ANA’s fleet, but the company’s creative approach made them iconic. All three planes have giant Hawaiian turtles painted on their fuselages. The giants immediately appeared on magazine covers; their photos quickly filled internet pages… Read more about this in our blog article.
ANA Flying Honu
How Japan Accidentally Fell in Love with the Superjumbo
How Japan Accidentally Fell in Love with the Superjumbo
Author's Column
On May 2, it became known that Spirit Airlines had ceased all operations. For me, this was sad news—pilots and company employees were often our customers. My first posters still featured the old livery. Our project launched in 2014, and back then, those designs were quite relevant, with bright yellow planes just beginning to fill the skies. Over the years, I’ve drawn several posters; seven are currently published on the site, and two more are archived.
As has happened before with important events, those connected or simply sympathetic reach out, asking to capture the memory of an aircraft or airline on a poster. This time was no different. Less than a day after the news about Spirit Airlines broke, we received a very touching letter from an employee of the company. He wrote that he had "suddenly lost his home." As a result, this poster (in the original, with a personalized title) was created. The print has already been sent to the recipient and will soon adorn his wall, reminding him of the wonderful time when he flew on a yellow plane.
As has happened before with important events, those connected or simply sympathetic reach out, asking to capture the memory of an aircraft or airline on a poster. This time was no different. Less than a day after the news about Spirit Airlines broke, we received a very touching letter from an employee of the company. He wrote that he had "suddenly lost his home." As a result, this poster (in the original, with a personalized title) was created. The print has already been sent to the recipient and will soon adorn his wall, reminding him of the wonderful time when he flew on a yellow plane.
Spirit Airlines
New Review
At the beginning of May, we received a review from one of our customers:
Your art looks great on my wall. Thank you.
So simple and concise, like a dialogue with a dispatcher. A true pilot. Every review inspires us, supports us, and gives us strength for new work. Thank you, Randy!
Your art looks great on my wall. Thank you.
So simple and concise, like a dialogue with a dispatcher. A true pilot. Every review inspires us, supports us, and gives us strength for new work. Thank you, Randy!
Order your posters and send us your reviews – we're open to communication and would love to create your very own poster.
Work That Never Ends
Do you know that running your own project when there are just two of you – my wife and I – is nothing like working in an office? There are no weekends in the usual sense, and excuses like "I don't know how," "I don't know," or "I don't feel like it" simply won't cut it. If it needs to be done, it gets done. You start and you do it.
There's no boss to assign tasks, check your work, and hand you a paycheck at the end of the month. Every function falls on you. And the work isn't just about drawing posters. It's website maintenance to keep it visible online, preparing posts for social media and platforms, and constantly learning something new. It can feel like the tasks are endless, because life keeps throwing new challenges your way.
Today I want to talk about what we have to do to get noticed on the internet. The web is huge – it covers practically the whole world (for now) – making it an ideal place for a project like Aviaposter.
Our website is the main platform where people discover my work. I built it using a website builder. For us, that was more convenient than depending on an outside developer (we'd already had that experience). Here, I'm my own designer and editor. We lived like that for eight years, until politicians once again decided to "divide" the world. And one day, we simply lost our website. To say it was a shock would be an understatement. But as they say, a person can get used to anything – and so did we. We sighed, of course, but not for long, because otherwise there would simply be nothing to live on. Within a week we sketched out a plan and got to work on a new site. We solved problems as they came. A couple of months later, we launched it in a very stripped-down form, and then came a long, long period of filling the store with products and content. We finally wrapped up that saga last year with a major redesign.
Social media is a whole other story. At first I felt like a fish in water there – everything was clear and simple. But times change, and so does social media. These guys are constantly introducing new rules! Now they strictly regulate how images should look. You've just gotten used to one template – bam! – everything needs to be redone. In the past four months, I've already changed templates three times.
But social media isn't just about images. Every platform has its own character, its own audience, its own topics. In some places, a bright image and a couple of words are what matters most; elsewhere, the audience likes to read long-form content. And these rules of the game are constantly changing too. That means you have to dedicate time to it and experiment. It all only comes with experience and learning. Twelve years ago, I had no idea any of this existed.
By the way, my responsibilities aren't limited to the internet. I'll tell you about that another time.
This year, our project turns twelve! There are still plenty of ideas in my head, and life keeps bringing new challenges. And you know what? This work will never end. And we're very much counting on that.
______________
What is there to read?
CRJ550
The Last of the Series
In November 2019, a new aircraft – the CRJ550 – entered service with United Airlines. Externally, it is indistinguishable from its predecessor, the Canadian regional jet CRJ700. Nevertheless, it was officially recognized as an entirely new model and even received its own designation.
Interestingly, I received an order for a CRJ550 poster as early as February the following year, after it had made its first commercial flight – that was in 2020. And when this poster appeared in our catalog, it became the most popular poster on the very first day. It continues to be in demand to this day. Despite everything I've read on the subject of the CRJ550, I still haven't figured out the reason for this particular model's popularity.
So how was this new and final model in the popular lineup of Canadian regional aircraft created? Read about it on our blog.
---
Landor
The Sky as a Canvas
I'll admit right away – for a long time, the name of the branding agency "Landor" was associated in my mind with just one of their projects: the iconic British Airways livery of the same name. However, in the course of working on the Aviaposter project, I came across the name in connection with other airlines as well. Once I gathered all the liveries created by this agency in one place, I noticed one thing they all had in common – they're all stunning.
Further study of the agency's work (and not only in aviation) led to the writing of this article. Here, though, I look only at their work for airlines. And since this doesn't cover everything they've done, I may well write a follow-up in the future.
______________
New Reviews
It's always wonderful to receive feedback on our work – it brings fresh inspiration and renewed energy. And that matters a great deal to all of us.
At the end of March, we received a new review from a customer on our "Boeing 767-200 BDSF ABX Air" poster, which had reached its destination. Here's what he wrote:
"I received the poster and finally have it hung in the office. I think it's an awesome piece – very detailed, printed on great poster stock, and it arrived very well packaged with zero issues. I'll definitely be ordering again at some point."
---
A couple of days before this issue went out, another review came in from the United Kingdom. Pilots often order posters with a personal title, and this was one of those cases. Here's what he wrote to us:
"I just wanted to let you know I have received the picture and I am very happy with it. It looks excellent."
Order your posters and send us your reviews – we're open to communication and would love to create your very own poster.
Do you know that running your own project when there are just two of you – my wife and I – is nothing like working in an office? There are no weekends in the usual sense, and excuses like "I don't know how," "I don't know," or "I don't feel like it" simply won't cut it. If it needs to be done, it gets done. You start and you do it.
There's no boss to assign tasks, check your work, and hand you a paycheck at the end of the month. Every function falls on you. And the work isn't just about drawing posters. It's website maintenance to keep it visible online, preparing posts for social media and platforms, and constantly learning something new. It can feel like the tasks are endless, because life keeps throwing new challenges your way.
Today I want to talk about what we have to do to get noticed on the internet. The web is huge – it covers practically the whole world (for now) – making it an ideal place for a project like Aviaposter.
Our website is the main platform where people discover my work. I built it using a website builder. For us, that was more convenient than depending on an outside developer (we'd already had that experience). Here, I'm my own designer and editor. We lived like that for eight years, until politicians once again decided to "divide" the world. And one day, we simply lost our website. To say it was a shock would be an understatement. But as they say, a person can get used to anything – and so did we. We sighed, of course, but not for long, because otherwise there would simply be nothing to live on. Within a week we sketched out a plan and got to work on a new site. We solved problems as they came. A couple of months later, we launched it in a very stripped-down form, and then came a long, long period of filling the store with products and content. We finally wrapped up that saga last year with a major redesign.
Social media is a whole other story. At first I felt like a fish in water there – everything was clear and simple. But times change, and so does social media. These guys are constantly introducing new rules! Now they strictly regulate how images should look. You've just gotten used to one template – bam! – everything needs to be redone. In the past four months, I've already changed templates three times.
But social media isn't just about images. Every platform has its own character, its own audience, its own topics. In some places, a bright image and a couple of words are what matters most; elsewhere, the audience likes to read long-form content. And these rules of the game are constantly changing too. That means you have to dedicate time to it and experiment. It all only comes with experience and learning. Twelve years ago, I had no idea any of this existed.
By the way, my responsibilities aren't limited to the internet. I'll tell you about that another time.
This year, our project turns twelve! There are still plenty of ideas in my head, and life keeps bringing new challenges. And you know what? This work will never end. And we're very much counting on that.
______________
What is there to read?
CRJ550
The Last of the Series
In November 2019, a new aircraft – the CRJ550 – entered service with United Airlines. Externally, it is indistinguishable from its predecessor, the Canadian regional jet CRJ700. Nevertheless, it was officially recognized as an entirely new model and even received its own designation.
Interestingly, I received an order for a CRJ550 poster as early as February the following year, after it had made its first commercial flight – that was in 2020. And when this poster appeared in our catalog, it became the most popular poster on the very first day. It continues to be in demand to this day. Despite everything I've read on the subject of the CRJ550, I still haven't figured out the reason for this particular model's popularity.
So how was this new and final model in the popular lineup of Canadian regional aircraft created? Read about it on our blog.
---
Landor
The Sky as a Canvas
I'll admit right away – for a long time, the name of the branding agency "Landor" was associated in my mind with just one of their projects: the iconic British Airways livery of the same name. However, in the course of working on the Aviaposter project, I came across the name in connection with other airlines as well. Once I gathered all the liveries created by this agency in one place, I noticed one thing they all had in common – they're all stunning.
Further study of the agency's work (and not only in aviation) led to the writing of this article. Here, though, I look only at their work for airlines. And since this doesn't cover everything they've done, I may well write a follow-up in the future.
______________
New Reviews
It's always wonderful to receive feedback on our work – it brings fresh inspiration and renewed energy. And that matters a great deal to all of us.
At the end of March, we received a new review from a customer on our "Boeing 767-200 BDSF ABX Air" poster, which had reached its destination. Here's what he wrote:
"I received the poster and finally have it hung in the office. I think it's an awesome piece – very detailed, printed on great poster stock, and it arrived very well packaged with zero issues. I'll definitely be ordering again at some point."
---
A couple of days before this issue went out, another review came in from the United Kingdom. Pilots often order posters with a personal title, and this was one of those cases. Here's what he wrote to us:
"I just wanted to let you know I have received the picture and I am very happy with it. It looks excellent."
Order your posters and send us your reviews – we're open to communication and would love to create your very own poster.
News #13
How We Make Packaging for Shipping Posters
The other day we went to pick up foam cylinders. Anyone who has already received our prints knows exactly what I'm talking about. This is a story about how we faced challenges more suited to designing an aircraft — even though it's just a postal box.
The story of these cylinders began in 2019 with one failed delivery. Back then, we were shipping our prints simply rolled up inside a homemade cardboard box with a triangular cross-section. We chose that shape specifically to protect the roll from being crushed — everyone knows that a triangle is a sturdier structure than a rectangle. The only protection for the print was bubble wrap, but it couldn't shield the photo paper from deformation caused by the collapsing sides of the outer cardboard box. And then came another failed delivery — the customer received a crumpled poster. Sadly, this was not uncommon. The box showed no obvious external damage, but the poster inside was deformed. After studying the nature of the damage, we concluded that the poster had been crushed due to the stress loads that occur during transportation.
Unfortunately, it's not unusual these days for baggage handlers to show little regard for the contents of aircraft cargo holds. All sorts of short videos circulate online showing parcels being "expertly" launched into imaginary basketball hoops or football goals — and thankfully no one has thought to use baseball bats yet. Although, I probably shouldn't have said that — don't give the handlers any ideas!
And even though that particular customer didn't file a complaint, it was precisely then that we decided enough was enough — it was time to do something about the problem. We needed to come up with additional protection for the roll that would prevent it from being crushed.
The challenge was made harder by the fact that we were trying to keep shipping costs to a minimum, and the price depended on the weight of the parcel. Up to that point we had been staying within the "up to 250 grams" bracket, and any increase in packaging weight would push us over that threshold — effectively doubling the shipping cost. We tried a huge number of options, and every one of them meant we'd have to raise our prices due to the higher postage.
Then, just when we had almost given up hope, the solution appeared! While searching for a cylindrical core for the poster — a task my wife had taken on — she found the most optimal option: foam cylinders cut to our specifications on request. After contacting the manufacturer, she visited the facility and brought back several samples of different diameters and densities. After testing them in practice, we settled on the ideal size and placed our first order. And the most magical thing of all — the cylinder was so light that we had every chance of staying within our existing postage rate.
At the same time, I redesigned the cardboard box so that it could fit the cylinder with a maximum of six posters wound around it, all wrapped in a single layer of bubble wrap. The first version of the packaging hit the target parameters almost to the gram. But then a new snag appeared: after sticking on all the required postal addresses, customs declarations, and stamps, the total weight exceeded 250 grams by a few grams. So we continued refining things — we reduced the length of both the cylinder and the tube by about five millimetres, and trimmed the width of the flaps on both end caps. Problem solved!
Since then, our tube has worked flawlessly. Over time we found another material for the cylinders, which freed up a few more grams. And the postal service updated its parcel documentation, so there are now far fewer stickers and forms to attach. Since then, we've had no further issues with posters being deformed from box compression.
______________
What is there to read?
A Short Note
I don't always have the time, energy, or skill to write long analytical articles with a cleverly crafted narrative. I'm more of an artist than a writer, after all. But often the subject I'm working on is so captivating that I feel an irresistible urge to share more than what fits on the poster. When researching the history of an airline, you start to understand the transformations it has gone through, and events sometimes reveal themselves from quite unexpected angles.
The two short stories published in the February blog appealed to me because unexpected — even seemingly illogical — events turned out to have roots stretching far back into the past.
An Unexpected Return
How did Singapore Airlines — known for its long-haul routes and a fleet made up exclusively of wide-body heavyweights — end up with a narrow-body Boeing 737-8 MAX? In any other context, this aircraft is positioned as a plane for medium-range routes. But among giants, it plays the role of a regional jet. And yet, this very airline once started out with the 737.
India's Premium Airline
In India, nothing disappears without a trace — everything is reborn in a new form. The country's first premium carrier is no exception. It no longer exists today, yet all of its aircraft are still in service, flying across the country and around the world. How is that possible, and how did Vistara end up as Air India's closest relative?
Read all about it on our blog.
______________
New Additions to the Catalog
New Works
February turned out to be generous — not just with snow and blizzards. New posters have appeared in our catalogue, most of which have already made their way to their new homes. These included both brand-new works and updates to existing posters.
Among the new additions to the project are two classic Boeing 737s — the Russian low-cost carrier Sky Express with its vivid, colourful livery, and another low-cost carrier, Helios, from the shores of Cyprus. Both operators have long since ceased to exist, but for those who flew on these aircraft, our poster is a page from their life.
The updates feature three aircraft. The British "Jumbo" — a veteran of the skies, once ruling the heavens; its place has now been taken by other giants. And two more... or one... or, actually, two. Two posters, two operators — but the same aircraft! Yes, that happens too.
Next up are already more posters, some of which are ready and will be published any day now. Details in the news on the Gallery page.
Full details on the "Poster Gallery" page.
______________
1. The British Jumbo
British Airways was once the world's largest operator of the Boeing 747-400, with a fleet of 57 aircraft. The "Queen of the Skies" served as the backbone of the airline's long-haul operations for over 30 years. But the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 forced the airline to retire its entire Jumbo fleet. The aircraft featured on our poster, G-CIVG, had already left the British fleet as part of a planned fleet renewal back in 2019 — four months before the mass retirement.
This poster first appeared on our website back in 2017. The current update marks its revival after nearly four years of absence.
2. Sky Express — Russia's First Low-Cost Carrier
The first fully-fledged low-cost carrier in Russia was Sky Express, founded in 2006. Its inaugural flight on the Moscow–Sochi route was operated by a Boeing 737-300 registered VP-BBN — yes, the very same aircraft depicted on our poster.
Interestingly, the original order that came in was for a poster of this airline, but with the registration N527AD. That's the same aircraft, but before it received its permanent Russian registration — N527AD being the seller's temporary registration. I completed the order and sent the drawing as requested, but decided to add the aircraft to the catalogue under its VP-BBN number. Incidentally, it wasn't just the tail number that needed changing — all the technical stickers and markings had to be updated too, as they differed significantly from the original version.
The version with the American registration is still in my files, so feel free to get in touch if you'd like this rare variant. N527AD is of particular interest to scale modellers, as a model of this aircraft was produced by the modelling industry. The main reason for the popularity of this registration is the Eastern Express 1:144 scale kit, whose decal sheet maker chose to include markings with the US registration. This version gained even wider circulation in the collector community thanks to JC Wings, which released a highly detailed 1:200 scale model specifically under the N527AD registration.
3. Helios Airways — Not the Luckiest Start-Up from Cyprus
I should say upfront — this is not the aircraft that became tragically famous! Our poster is dedicated to the very first aircraft in the Helios Airways fleet, which flew with the company for about a year before moving on. For someone, this particular aircraft was something special — special enough to order a poster of it as a keepsake. Was it the aircraft on which they took their first flight as a pilot? Or perhaps the one on which they first took to the skies as a passenger? Who among us doesn't remember their first encounter with the sky? Either way, these are warm memories — and I help preserve them for years to come.
4 & 5. One Aircraft, Two Lives
These two posters are inseparable, because they depict the same aircraft — just at different points in its life.
From its very first days, it flew in the livery of German cargo carrier Lufthansa Cargo. In those years it was beloved by spotters and aviation enthusiasts alike, and its registration D-ALCN was known by heart. Whenever the aircraft came into view of those in the know, there was a stir in the crowd — enormous lenses swung skyward, and an excited "It's him!" swept through the gathering. And no wonder, for this aircraft was the last MD-11 ever built, marking the end of an era of legendary giants. In 2018, it took its place on one of our posters.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, Lufthansa began hastily disposing of its ageing MD-11 fleet. D-ALCN passed to American carrier UPS and in April of that year received its current registration, N262UP. By the end of the same year, a new poster appeared showing the MD-11 in its new guise.
Following a tragic incident last year, UPS retired its entire MD-11 fleet, including the 262nd. Whether it will ever fly again remains to be seen. In the meantime, we have preserved it for lasting memory in our posters, which I recently updated.
The other day we went to pick up foam cylinders. Anyone who has already received our prints knows exactly what I'm talking about. This is a story about how we faced challenges more suited to designing an aircraft — even though it's just a postal box.
The story of these cylinders began in 2019 with one failed delivery. Back then, we were shipping our prints simply rolled up inside a homemade cardboard box with a triangular cross-section. We chose that shape specifically to protect the roll from being crushed — everyone knows that a triangle is a sturdier structure than a rectangle. The only protection for the print was bubble wrap, but it couldn't shield the photo paper from deformation caused by the collapsing sides of the outer cardboard box. And then came another failed delivery — the customer received a crumpled poster. Sadly, this was not uncommon. The box showed no obvious external damage, but the poster inside was deformed. After studying the nature of the damage, we concluded that the poster had been crushed due to the stress loads that occur during transportation.
Unfortunately, it's not unusual these days for baggage handlers to show little regard for the contents of aircraft cargo holds. All sorts of short videos circulate online showing parcels being "expertly" launched into imaginary basketball hoops or football goals — and thankfully no one has thought to use baseball bats yet. Although, I probably shouldn't have said that — don't give the handlers any ideas!
And even though that particular customer didn't file a complaint, it was precisely then that we decided enough was enough — it was time to do something about the problem. We needed to come up with additional protection for the roll that would prevent it from being crushed.
The challenge was made harder by the fact that we were trying to keep shipping costs to a minimum, and the price depended on the weight of the parcel. Up to that point we had been staying within the "up to 250 grams" bracket, and any increase in packaging weight would push us over that threshold — effectively doubling the shipping cost. We tried a huge number of options, and every one of them meant we'd have to raise our prices due to the higher postage.
Then, just when we had almost given up hope, the solution appeared! While searching for a cylindrical core for the poster — a task my wife had taken on — she found the most optimal option: foam cylinders cut to our specifications on request. After contacting the manufacturer, she visited the facility and brought back several samples of different diameters and densities. After testing them in practice, we settled on the ideal size and placed our first order. And the most magical thing of all — the cylinder was so light that we had every chance of staying within our existing postage rate.
At the same time, I redesigned the cardboard box so that it could fit the cylinder with a maximum of six posters wound around it, all wrapped in a single layer of bubble wrap. The first version of the packaging hit the target parameters almost to the gram. But then a new snag appeared: after sticking on all the required postal addresses, customs declarations, and stamps, the total weight exceeded 250 grams by a few grams. So we continued refining things — we reduced the length of both the cylinder and the tube by about five millimetres, and trimmed the width of the flaps on both end caps. Problem solved!
Since then, our tube has worked flawlessly. Over time we found another material for the cylinders, which freed up a few more grams. And the postal service updated its parcel documentation, so there are now far fewer stickers and forms to attach. Since then, we've had no further issues with posters being deformed from box compression.
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What is there to read?
A Short Note
I don't always have the time, energy, or skill to write long analytical articles with a cleverly crafted narrative. I'm more of an artist than a writer, after all. But often the subject I'm working on is so captivating that I feel an irresistible urge to share more than what fits on the poster. When researching the history of an airline, you start to understand the transformations it has gone through, and events sometimes reveal themselves from quite unexpected angles.
The two short stories published in the February blog appealed to me because unexpected — even seemingly illogical — events turned out to have roots stretching far back into the past.
An Unexpected Return
How did Singapore Airlines — known for its long-haul routes and a fleet made up exclusively of wide-body heavyweights — end up with a narrow-body Boeing 737-8 MAX? In any other context, this aircraft is positioned as a plane for medium-range routes. But among giants, it plays the role of a regional jet. And yet, this very airline once started out with the 737.
India's Premium Airline
In India, nothing disappears without a trace — everything is reborn in a new form. The country's first premium carrier is no exception. It no longer exists today, yet all of its aircraft are still in service, flying across the country and around the world. How is that possible, and how did Vistara end up as Air India's closest relative?
Read all about it on our blog.
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New Additions to the Catalog
New Works
February turned out to be generous — not just with snow and blizzards. New posters have appeared in our catalogue, most of which have already made their way to their new homes. These included both brand-new works and updates to existing posters.
Among the new additions to the project are two classic Boeing 737s — the Russian low-cost carrier Sky Express with its vivid, colourful livery, and another low-cost carrier, Helios, from the shores of Cyprus. Both operators have long since ceased to exist, but for those who flew on these aircraft, our poster is a page from their life.
The updates feature three aircraft. The British "Jumbo" — a veteran of the skies, once ruling the heavens; its place has now been taken by other giants. And two more... or one... or, actually, two. Two posters, two operators — but the same aircraft! Yes, that happens too.
Next up are already more posters, some of which are ready and will be published any day now. Details in the news on the Gallery page.
Full details on the "Poster Gallery" page.
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1. The British Jumbo
British Airways was once the world's largest operator of the Boeing 747-400, with a fleet of 57 aircraft. The "Queen of the Skies" served as the backbone of the airline's long-haul operations for over 30 years. But the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 forced the airline to retire its entire Jumbo fleet. The aircraft featured on our poster, G-CIVG, had already left the British fleet as part of a planned fleet renewal back in 2019 — four months before the mass retirement.
This poster first appeared on our website back in 2017. The current update marks its revival after nearly four years of absence.
2. Sky Express — Russia's First Low-Cost Carrier
The first fully-fledged low-cost carrier in Russia was Sky Express, founded in 2006. Its inaugural flight on the Moscow–Sochi route was operated by a Boeing 737-300 registered VP-BBN — yes, the very same aircraft depicted on our poster.
Interestingly, the original order that came in was for a poster of this airline, but with the registration N527AD. That's the same aircraft, but before it received its permanent Russian registration — N527AD being the seller's temporary registration. I completed the order and sent the drawing as requested, but decided to add the aircraft to the catalogue under its VP-BBN number. Incidentally, it wasn't just the tail number that needed changing — all the technical stickers and markings had to be updated too, as they differed significantly from the original version.
The version with the American registration is still in my files, so feel free to get in touch if you'd like this rare variant. N527AD is of particular interest to scale modellers, as a model of this aircraft was produced by the modelling industry. The main reason for the popularity of this registration is the Eastern Express 1:144 scale kit, whose decal sheet maker chose to include markings with the US registration. This version gained even wider circulation in the collector community thanks to JC Wings, which released a highly detailed 1:200 scale model specifically under the N527AD registration.
3. Helios Airways — Not the Luckiest Start-Up from Cyprus
I should say upfront — this is not the aircraft that became tragically famous! Our poster is dedicated to the very first aircraft in the Helios Airways fleet, which flew with the company for about a year before moving on. For someone, this particular aircraft was something special — special enough to order a poster of it as a keepsake. Was it the aircraft on which they took their first flight as a pilot? Or perhaps the one on which they first took to the skies as a passenger? Who among us doesn't remember their first encounter with the sky? Either way, these are warm memories — and I help preserve them for years to come.
4 & 5. One Aircraft, Two Lives
These two posters are inseparable, because they depict the same aircraft — just at different points in its life.
From its very first days, it flew in the livery of German cargo carrier Lufthansa Cargo. In those years it was beloved by spotters and aviation enthusiasts alike, and its registration D-ALCN was known by heart. Whenever the aircraft came into view of those in the know, there was a stir in the crowd — enormous lenses swung skyward, and an excited "It's him!" swept through the gathering. And no wonder, for this aircraft was the last MD-11 ever built, marking the end of an era of legendary giants. In 2018, it took its place on one of our posters.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, Lufthansa began hastily disposing of its ageing MD-11 fleet. D-ALCN passed to American carrier UPS and in April of that year received its current registration, N262UP. By the end of the same year, a new poster appeared showing the MD-11 in its new guise.
Following a tragic incident last year, UPS retired its entire MD-11 fleet, including the 262nd. Whether it will ever fly again remains to be seen. In the meantime, we have preserved it for lasting memory in our posters, which I recently updated.
News #12
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