Recently, it was revealed that Alaska Airlines had decided to repaint the well-known flying fish known as “Salmon-Thirty-Salmon II,” a Boeing 737-800 that is actually painted to look like a salmon. Alaska changed their corporate brand in 2016, which featured a stunning new livery (aka the paint of the plane). Regrettably, this resulted in incredible special schemes being painted over with plain designs or completely forgotten to fly using ordinary colours.

#BREAKING: just getting word that the @AlaskaAir has internally announced on an employee site that the “Salmon-Thirty-Salmon II” will be making its final flight in that livery on April 17 when it operates AS65 and it will not be replaced with another Salmon paint but instead a… https://t.co/JXZiRlbVUE pic.twitter.com/XWH4WqiARJ

— Brandon Farris Photography (@BDFphotography) February 22, 2023

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The aircraft’s livery includes a picture of a 129-foot-long wild Alaska king salmon, fish scales on the winglets, and the word “Alaska” written across the fuselage in salmon pink. The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, which promotes wild, natural, and sustainable Alaska seafood, collaborated with Boeing to create the 2012 design, which is among the most extensively painted commercial aircraft in the world.

Let’s attempt to convince Alaska Airlines of the importance of this livery to us, the travelling public, and everybody who appreciates the flavour of salmon! On April 18, this magnificent aeroplane is scheduled to go to the paint shop.

How the term Salmon-Thirty-Salmon came to fruition

While a Boeing 737 was taking off from Juneau, Alaska on a crisp day, the pilots spotted a bird. Nonetheless, the pilots ultimately realised that this bird was a very huge Bald Eagle and posed minimal threat of a strike. Bird sightings or even strikes are not that unusual. At that moment, they became aware of a target they would afterwards come across: a fish that was plummeting. The eagle released its lunch from its talons when it saw the jet speeding towards it, and the salmon was now airborne.

The fish clattered on the side of the jet, doing very little damage, and the pilots turned around for a safe landing. The pilots were back in their aircraft and on their way after a quick inspection and approval from maintenance personnel. But not before washing the scales off their plane! So, Mark Boyle was called by Alaska Airlines, which is well-known for its vibrant distinctive liveries, to paint a plane in honour of their collaboration with the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute (which promotes wild, natural, and sustainable Alaska seafood).

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