Air Transport

SkyTeam member carriers are expected shortly to introduce a unified livery on some aircraft, while Czech Airlines appears already to have revealed the basics of the design.

The alliance stated last June that the common scheme would feature on 1% of its global fleet, but that it was still in the process of approving the colours.

But an image of an ATR 42 turboprop, apparently from Czech Airlines' internal publication Okno, indicates that the design will carry SkyTeam's logo on a dark blue vertical fin, and the alliance's name on the forward fuselage, with an identifier for the operating carrier.

The livery also features a large representation of the characteristic SkyTeam 'ribbon' on the rear fuselage. A caption below the image from Okno states that Czech Airlines will paint one of its ATR 42s in the colours in April.

US SkyTeam member Delta Air Lines is said to be already painting one of its Boeing 767-400 aircraft in the common livery.

SkyTeam has 11 full members and three associate members, with Romania's Tarom expected to bring the number of associates to four this year.

Star Alliance unveiled its common livery in 2002 while the Oneworld group last year started featuring its own scheme on member airlines.