Cargo Airline Logo Critique

jgcrowther

jgcrowther

New Member
Hi, this is my first post here so I'll give myself a quick intro. I have an education in Product Design, during my course however I found I was more passionate about graphic design. While I understand the design process, I don't have nearly as much knowledge as someone who has gone through a graphic design course or has experience in the industry. I do read books to help me along the way, but books can't give me feedback! At the moment I'm trying to build up a decent portfolio of work, getting some criticism/advice would be super helpful to :)

I'm currently working on this project for my portfolio. It starts by redesigning the logo of West Atlantic, a cargo airline based in Sweden, UK and Luxemburg. The airline works on behalf of other companies like Deutsche Post, rather than directly with the general public. They also provided aircraft maintenance and conversions (passenger - cargo), crew training, logistics consultancy, leasing and flight crew. You can see there current logo here: Home - West Atlantic

The messages I'm trying to convey are trust, reliability, speed, efficiency and thoroughness. I came up with several initial ideas, then narrowed it down to these three logos below.

West Atlantic 1.jpg
This first logo depicts "Atlas" the mythological Greek titan, the Atlantic ocean is named after him.

West Atlantic 2.jpg
The inital idea behind this one was a relay race / passing the baton - links to logistics.


West Atlantic 3.jpg
This started out as "overcoming an obstruction" and "getting from point to point". This is my favourite out of the three.


Thanks in advance for your criticism.
 
Hi jg,

A logo on it's own is difficult to comment on without being totally subjective.
You should put it in context, ie. on an actual aircraft they use, other areas it will be used on agin maybe a vehicle.
Colour can make or break a branding, so consider this too.

I know it is a little more work, but it will help you in the long run.
John Watters
 
While I'd agree with you to an extent John, I would also say 99% of the logos posted in this section are stand alone logos not applied in any context.

As for your logos JG I'm not personally a big fan but that's because I am having difficulty identifying the icon parts of them, do they have any relevancy / are they core graphics the company currently use? if not maybe they need to be developed a bit?
 
Hi Spottypenguin,

Branding is not merely creating a logo. As jg is taking this as a 'project' and not being a live brief. I would suggest an amount
of research is called for, the environment, the existing website and maybe looking at the Brand guidelines of another airline
(available online). Being a 'portfolio' project it will need to address many criteria or it can be difficult to judge that the identity
fulfills it's ultimate position in the marketplace. Just because this is a 'project', it should be undertaken to be taken seriously
otherwise it is open to merely subjective comment. Much like commenting on someones choice of shoe?
Putting it in context will concentrate the appreciation of how it can work in the required environment and with a measured
response. Plus.This is all down to learning how to become a 'brand' designer. Together with giving jg a portfolio piece.

John
 
Thanks for the feedback so far.

John I agree with your advice on putting it in context / adding colour - this is something I was planning on doing later anyway and have been considering it whilst designing. I understand colour is important to a brand, but it's my understanding logos should be able to work in black/white to? I posted the logos as they are because I had been working on them for a while, and if you work on something enough long enough your judgment tends to become biased. Doing some research into a different airlines brand guidelines sounds like a great idea, thanks for the link.

Spottypenguin I'm not entirely sure I understand your question regarding relevance / core graphics. My aim is take to create a brand identity with the research I have done, I don't want to use any graphics they already have. I'm almost imagining the company is brand new. The logos I've created aren't overly obvious to the brands business initially, but they are all ideas that came up whilst brainstorming messages the company wants to emphasize. Is it that you don't think what I've created so far relates to the messages I put in my original post?
 
john watters said:
Colour can make or break a branding, so consider this too.
Click to expand...

I'd have to disagree with this. Always, always, always get a logo nailed in black and white first. If you start by working with colour, it may turn out to be awful when used in black and white. (Not all businesses use colour printers/photo copiers.)

99% of the time, if you get your logo working in black and white, it will work in whatever colour you choose.

With regards to the actual logos, I'm not keen on any of them. Like Sam said, I can't really work out what the icons are (if anything) which is always a bad sign. Maybe it's just me, but I really detest logos which use marks or icons with no meaning or relevance.
 
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ARRIVALS said:
I can't really work out what the icons are (if anything) which is always a bad sign.
Click to expand...

That's what I mean jg.

And John, having graduated with a First and worked in the industry for over 10years I fully understand what logo is but thank you for that clarification however my original point was that 99% of the logos posted in this forum aren't shown in contect and we still manage to help people.
 
OK thanks again.. seeing this from another perspective has really helped clear my mind and clarify a few things. I think I will head back to the drawing board and try to come up with something more recognizable.
 
i like the 3rd design being honest but it does remind me of virgin aerospace logo, try make the 3rd logo look more of a W instead of a V (thats what the 3rd logo looks like to me)
 
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