Playing a role in temperature harmonization,
Airbus has added a dark black cockpit outline to its A350 and other aircraft,
including the A330neo family and some (but not all) A321neos and A321LRs.
But airlines have taken it upon themselves to
add this outline to their non-Airbus or older-generation Airbus aircraft
as purely aesthetic enhancements. Let's take a look at some examples…
In 2017, Air Canada began to introduce its latest livery.
A little bit of a throwback to its 1990-early 2000 livery, the airline went back to white,
red, and black with a few modern touches. The maple leaf roundel returned to the tail
while engines and the belly of the fuselage were painted black.
Of course, one of the most distinctive elements of the carrier's current livery is the thick black
outline around the cockpit of each Air Canada aircraft. Implemented fleet-wide, this dark
outline appears on every plane, from the small A220 all the way up to the Boeing 777 and 787.
Between these two size-extremes, older-generation Airbus jets and
the newer Boeing 737 MAX have also received the eye-mask treatment.
To be fair, however, Air Canada's cockpit outline has a unique style of its own, remaining somewhat
flat across the top. The bottom black edge bends upwards to meet the top line at either side.
Our next example comes from Northern Pacific. This brand-new Alaska-based airline was hoping
to give its newly-acquired but older and "pre-loved" aircraft a fresh look.
While the one Boeing 757 it has firmly secured and painted is about 27 years old,
the airline wanted to give it a modern appearance with a dark black
outline. Indeed, from some angles, the cockpit outline could be considered "A321neo-esque."
With the airline's aspirations to modernize its fleet when the time is right,
perhaps the A321-like cockpit mask is 'wishful thinking'?
On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, there are a few examples as well.
While no European example we've found has painted Boeing jets with a dark outline,
the three carriers we've identified have added the look to older Airbus aircraft.
In July 2021, Portuguese wet lease airline Hi Fly posted a video to YouTube showing off its
latest aircraft- an Airbus A330. While the video's title makes it clear that it's an Airbus A330-300,
you might be forgiven for thinking it was an A330-900. That's because Hi Fly
gave this older widebody a new livery with a dark black outline around the cockpit.
The airline also has an A340 with the same livery and outline.
Germany's Eurowings Discover has also given its older aircraft a cockpit outline,
which is present on the carrier's A320-200s and A330-300s. Meanwhile, an Airbus A340-300
used by Lithuania’s Airhub Aviation also gets a similar black outline around the cockpit glass.
Airhub has two A340-300s and uses them as 'preighters' to transport freight.
Airbus notes that the emblematic "sunglasses" like black windshield
eases the window's maintenance and contributes
to harmonizing the thermal condition of this temperature-sensitive window area."
So, while the dark outline is indeed a functional part of newer Airbus jets, others have adopted
it as a style and perhaps a way to give their older aircraft a fresh and modern appearance.
From a purely aesthetic point of view, what do you think of the dark outline around the cockpit?
Does it look good to you? Let us know by leaving a comment.