Let’s take a look at this airplane manufacturer’s humble beginnings and how it changed the future of flight.
The Taylor Brothers
Piper Aircraft was once Taylor Brothers Aircraft Corporation, established in 1927 by the Taylor Brothers. Unfortunately, just a year into the aircraft company’s inception, Gordon Taylor died during an airplane demonstration.
After his death, his brother Clarence would take a partnership with William Piper, one of their first investors. A successful business mogul, Piper seized an opportunity after seeing the company’s potential. Little did they know then that this small partnership would catapult Piper into being one of the biggest names in aviation.
William Piper’s Takeover
Just as the partnership was taking place, Taylor Brothers Aircraft had to file for bankruptcy after the stock market’s devastating decline in 1929. Little by little, Piper had to chip in and save the company from completely going under.
Eventually, Piper had reigned over several of Taylor Brothers Aircraft’s business decisions. This would often lead to a clash between the partners. Soon, the pair would separate to create their own companies: Piper Aircraft and Taylorcraft. Although Piper was a talented businessman, he couldn’t deny that most of his successful sales were adapted from Taylor’s creations.
The Rise of the Piper Aircraft
As the United States anxiously entered World War II, the demand for aircraft saw a significant uptick. Piper took advantage of this and was able to monopolize the aviation market.
A vast majority of the pilots in WWII made use of Piper Cubs, one of the best-selling planes from Piper Aircraft and one of Clarence Taylor’s designs. Even post-war, Piper was able to secure the company’s future by targeting companies who would use aircraft as a means of occupation.
In the ‘60s, Piper Aircraft expanded to new facilities and would create many of the beloved aircraft we know today, such as the Piper Apache, the Cheyenne, and more. Its success attracted many investors and buyers and was eventually purchased by Bangor Punta Corporation.
The New and Improved Piper Aircraft
After William Piper’s death at 89 years old, the company saw a change in leadership multiple times. At some point, they went bankrupt, having to rebrand as “The New Piper Aircraft.” Although it held a promising future after its rebrand, including a partnership with Honda, it would once again face economic struggle.
In 2007, the Great Recession plagued the economy, leading to budget cuts and a decline in the workforce. These factors greatly impacted the airline industry, pulling Piper Aircraft along with it. That is until the company was bought by Imprimis, an investment strategy company from the Government of Brunei.
Since this acquisition, the company was able to get back on its feet, leading us to the Piper Aircraft that we know today.
Conclusion
Like an airplane under turbulence, it was not smooth sailing for Piper Aircraft. The company grew from a small company developed by two brothers and is now one of the most successful manufacturers of airplanes.
Immortalize the brilliance of Piper Aircraft with your very own aviationtag made from one of Piper’s planes. At Part of a Plane, we provide beautiful accessories created from airplane skins. Browse our catalog now to have a piece of history in your hands.
]]>The Birth of an Idea
Aviationtag was born in 1993, where its chief commercial officer, Tobias Richter, fell in love with aircrafts. By working in Ground handling under Debonair, Alitalia, and European Express, he found his place in bordbar. From there, the initial idea of repurposing airline trolleys into another product line was beginning. By 2015, Stephan Boltz bought a Piper PA28 for a teardown to achieve this goal. However, he wondered what else could be developed with the upcycled scrap.
After plans for a lamp upcycled from used aircraft structures went nowhere, Boltz tinkered with the idea of creating tags from the plane’s skin. This simple idea made it possible for the first Avationtag edition to be released in 2016.
The Process of Taking a Piece of History
Aviationtag connects with partner networks around the globe to buy different airframes or parts. Afterward, these planes undergo a rigorous process of salvaging scrap from unique frames. Since aircrafts are built differently, doing work on an Airbus A310 is different from dissecting a Boeing 747. For this reason, it’s necessary to have a full understanding of each aircraft’s build.
From the aircraft’s different panels, a desired spot is cut, packed, and transported to Germany. What follows is a systematic removal of rivets, stringers, and frames that remain on the skin. The company then cuts long flat pieces and punches the tags out of the base material. Afterward comes the sanding of its edges, engraving of designs, and cleaning before packing for sale.
The Act of Immortalizing Aircrafts
Aviationtag works with key partners like American Airlines, DHL, Air Canada, and Lufthansa and has sold over 200,000 units worldwide. Through Aviationtag’s products, the memories of decommissioned aircrafts can find a home in modern collectors’ hearts. The production of these sentimental memorabilia is a great way to give a final goodbye to these retired aircrafts bit by bit. Richter sees this process as a great way to preserve the memories attached to a plane.
Although it’s saddening to say goodbye to veteran aircrafts, Aviationtag’s business models make it possible to maintain their legacy. While these planes will no longer take to the skies, the tags produced aim to share a part of history to thousands of airplane enthusiasts worldwide. In fact, its Facebook fan group has a steady increase of 2,400 members and continues to grow to this day.
Conclusion
Aviationtag’s success is a heartwarming reminder that the history imbued in retired aircrafts can still be purchased and protected. As future generations of aircrafts continue to be produced, it’s reassuring to know that all things must come to an end. Nevertheless, this end doesn’t stop with being stuck in a hangar. Instead, a plane can exist beyond its use and find its home in an airplane enthusiast’s pocket.
Our store features a one-stop-shop for all aviation collectors. We provide various Aviationtag products along with other aircraft-related collectibles and memorabilia. Browse our store and find a piece of history from the skies today!
Airbus’ 300-seater, the A300. made waves when it first entered the commercial market in the late 1970s. It was a great competitor against the likes of Boeing, which led to a shift in long-haul flying from then on. This marked the popularity of twin-jet designs over tri-jet models. However, Airbus didn’t stop with the A300’s success by looking forward to developing A310 to top their latest aircraft.
The A300’s Impact in Realizing Market Demands
The A300’s development was a great fit for the market, showing impressive numbers upon its release. While its outstanding success became the envy of competitors, it also revealed a hidden truth in the industry. During the A300’s peak in popularity, interest in a smaller yet highly capable aircraft was realized by airlines. This led to the rise in demand for aircrafts in the 200-seater range.
The primary reason why some airlines were reluctant with the A300 is due to its massive size. Although it has impressive capabilities of holding over 300 passengers, not all airlines needed its level of luxury. Additionally, some airlines preferred a shorter plane that could travel between distances with greater frequency.
The Development of the A300
Thankfully, Airbus already had propositions for a shorter design of the A300. For this reason, development on a smaller A300 aircraft was much easier. This led to smoother shortcuts in the design process and allowed continued production of the A310 simultaneously with the recently released A300.
Besides the size difference, the comfort of having similar blueprints for aircraft also affects its maneuverability. The commonality in design allows A300 pilots to comfortably switch to the A310’s interface without much transition or training required. This cuts down testing times and fast-track the release of Airbus’ new product.
The release of Airbus’ A310 showed great promise as a counterpart to the Boeing 757. Due to its success, Lufthansa showed interest in ordering the A310 in droves. This followed with numerous requests from KLM, Air France, Swissair, and other airlines.
The Diversity in A310 Aircrafts
Airbus’ development of its A310 aircraft aimed to service the demands for international and regional travel. For this reason, they developed the A310-100 and A310-200.
The A310 maintained a 200-passenger capacity with the ability to travel over 2,000 nautical miles. This model was intended for brands like Lufthansa, which preferred travel between Europe’s different cities and the Atlantic. On the other hand, the A310-200 was intended to be the preferred choice for international travel.
Over time, the limited capacity of the A310-100 caused airlines to prefer the -200 model due to its greater fuel efficiency. For this reason, Airbus discreetly shunted development on the -100 model and started development on the A310-300. This model has an increased range of covering over 5,150 nautical miles, a 2,000-mile improvement over the A310-200.
Conclusion
The history of aircrafts is rich and full of many struggles, competitive spats, and technological innovations, which is why it’s so exciting to read through. Besides getting to know an aircraft’s past, you can also take a piece of history with you in the palm of your hand. This is where we specialize in crafting the best collectors’ items for aircraft enthusiasts.
We have a wide range of products for aircraft enthusiasts to showcase their love of high-quality memorabilia. Our pieces come directly from an aircrafts' frame, making them unique and truly authentic collectibles. Browse our store and discover different items like airline tailfins keyrings, aviation tag lanyards, and more!
]]>The Cessna 150: A Basic Guide to an Aviation Icon
To best understand how iconic the Cessna 150 is, it’s best to know a little bit more about its history. Introduced by the Cessna Aircraft Company in 1959, the 150 was built as a forerunner of the modern passenger aircraft that was developed to provide a flying experience ahead of its time. The airplane featured an all-metal construction coupled with a tricycle-gear configuration that—in combination—made flying any distance quite easier.
Since its release, the plane in question was made available in four different versions:
The differences between the four versions are in various features such as cockpit appointments, additional functions, subtle design tweaks, and set purposes. For instance, the Standard 150 possessed a different cockpit appointment from the Trainer. Additionally, the Commuter was built to provide comfort for personal traveling while the Patroller was developed for utility work.
Understanding The Legacy of the Cessna 150
When it comes to understanding why the 150 is so popular even to this day, it all boils down to how it was promoted and eventually perceived by the general flying public.
Upon its introduction, the 150 was promoted by the Cessna Aircraft Company as the “World’s Premier Trainer”—and for good reason. With a design that borrowed many styling cues from the best characteristics of the 120 and 140 models—the brand’s widely-renowned tailwheels—it was an immediate hit among many.
Thanks to the features that it was outfitted with, the plane model in question was a proper learning space in the sky while providing easier ground handling and landings. These key features are primarily why many of the USA’s flying schools use the Cessna 150 to this day—no model has come close in terms of approachability and ease of use.
The Finer Details
Aside from the side-by-side seating and top-notch configurations, the reason Cessna was able to manufacture almost 24,000 units is that it went beyond being a premier trainer model.
One key feature that enhanced its sellability among fliers was its superb overall handling quality compared to other models in its range. With the average model cruising at 121 mph at 75 percent power and possessing standout stability on all axes, the 150 could lift off quicker and land shorter.
Another aspect of the 150 that made it a special model for fliers aplenty was the power-to-weight ratio that helped it double up in terms of flying experience. With a 100-horsepower Continental O-200 engine and an average weight ranging from 1,500 to 1,670 pounds, it’s easy to see why it’s a plane of choice for newbies and veterans alike.
(Want to have a memorable piece of the historic Cessna 150 in your collection? Check out our Aviationtag Cessna 150 (D-EOMO) in white!)
Conclusion
From being a learning tool of choice to being an easy shoe-in for commuter travels, the Cessna 150 has cemented its legacy as one of the most iconic airplanes in the history of aviation. While many models will continue to spring to life in the coming years, very few will come close in terms of replicating the icon status of Cessna’s flagship model!
If you're looking for a genuine aviationtag that you can bring anywhere you go, Part of a Plane has got you covered. Browse through a wide range of options by visiting our online shop today!
]]>The A380’s Early Retirement and Comeback
Unfortunately, the threat of the pandemic led to a postponement of air travel for numerous nations. The global pandemic forced plenty of aircraft to stay inside hangars to avoid international transmission of COVID-19. However, the A380 will soon be back in service now that countries are slowly healing.
Although Singapore was the first to retire the A380’s for air travel, it will soon take back this decision by putting it back in the skies. With 12 of the 19 A380s set to fly in 2021 onwards, it’s a monumental step that signals the return of airlines in the coming years.
What exactly makes the Airbus A380 an amazing giant? Here are three facts you should know:
The Airbus A380 series is commonly pitted against the Boeing 747 for good reason. This is because there was a time when both companies potentially had a partnership in the past aimed at developing jumbo jet aircrafts. During 1993, the two companies studied the potential market size for large airplanes. It was an attempt to capitalize on the demand, but the joint venture fell off when Boeing started to build their own jumbo jet.
Seemingly in response to Boeing’s development, Airbus discreetly developed Project A3XX, which would soon be the A380. After the next two decades, Airbus saw the high demand for jumbo jets, building over 250 aircrafts by 2021. While it’s still far off from their initial target of 750 jumbo jets, it’s still an impressive feat to achieve.
The Airbus A380 is a massive contender among jumbo jets in the same class. In fact, it’s the heaviest commercial aircraft currently in existence. Although its impressive size can be imposing, it’s actually the safest aircraft of its kind.
With over 2500 hours of flight testing done within 19 months, the A380 can run under extreme temperatures and conditions. The result? An impressive feat of passing every safety test, even with its massive size. This is a testament to Airbus’ development of a quality aircraft.
Containing a typical three-class layout, the A380 can seat over 525 passengers. However, this can be extended to 853 with a single-class layout. This jumbo jet runs through four engines containing either Rolls-Royce Trent 900s or the Engine Alliance GP7000 turbofan engines. This gentle giant can fly for up to 15,025 miles at 1030 kmph, all in one full tank.
Conclusion
It’s a natural part of an aircraft’s lifespan to fall out of popularity due to the times eventually. However, it’s not too late for the A380 to make a steady comeback in the future. This year, its return to the skies is a sign that it will soon bring back the economy for air travel. Thankfully, you don’t have to be an actual passenger of the A380 to feel a part of its glory.
At Part of A Plane, we sell unique products derived from aircraft skins, making them have a unique feel and bearing. We sell different Airbus aviation tags and other accessories for the collector in you! Browse our store and keep a part of the A380 in your pocket today!
]]>What Exactly Is a Fuselage?
A fuselage comprises the entire airplane’s body, containing the hollow interior and other equipment inside an aircraft. It’s practically the ‘middle part’ of an airplane with wings at the side. It technically houses the cockpit and the tail by its rear.
If the fuselage’s outer shell is breached while in flight, the entire plane will be under intense stress due to air pressure. This endangers the passengers and crew with a sudden loss of pressure and oxygen levels. Thankfully, fuselages are made with durable material to protect their passengers while remaining light and aerodynamic.
In this article, we’ll go over a plane’s five different fuselage types.
The early beginnings of fuselages were much different, primarily due to the limitation and experimentation by manufacturers. For example, wooden fuselages were built for optimal aerodynamic design. This means it was extremely light to accommodate flight capabilities but was limited in protection since it was composed of wire-bracing and fabric coverings. Although wood fuselages were used for primitive plane designs, modern hobbyists still prefer them for building small, lightweight planes.
Most modern airplanes use an aluminum fuselage because aluminum is naturally lightweight. Additionally, it’s resistant to rust, making it easier to maintain. This is why airplanes developed from the 1930s onward focused on all-metal designs. While aluminum is a great material for strong and light aircraft, it’s still not the best option for more heavy-duty planes traveling at supersonic speeds.
Titanium alloys are typically more costly since they’re a premium material. This is why most commercial airplanes don’t have it. It’s more common to have titanium fuselages for military-grade aircraft since they have much better properties than other fuselage options.
Steel is a typical choice for construction material due to its weight and rigidity. However, it can also be used for aircraft. While its weight makes it less ideal for an entire plane, different components like landing gears can benefit from its durability. Additionally, steel fuselages are perfect for supersonic planes since it has much greater resistance than aluminum.
Most state-of-the-art aircraft forgo the traditional choice of steel or aluminum fuselages. Instead, they utilize carbon-fiber-reinforced polymers. These carbon composites are more resilient than typical fuselage materials, making them effective and durable during high-speed flights. With its light load, it’s much easier to build a plane with faster flight capability with half the load in weight.
Conclusion
A fuselage is just one of the many components of a plane, with thousands of airplane parts built and rebuilt every day. This is because airplanes need to keep improving to keep up with technological advancements. Since there’s so much scrap material to go around with, manufacturers have found a way to turn scrap metal into interesting trinkets for diehard collectors of aircraft accessories and memorabilia.
At Part of A Plane, we sell unique products derived from aircraft skins, making them have a unique feel and bearing. It's a great way to bring a piece of history and the ingenuity of airplanes to the palm of your hand. Shop for different fuselage creations today and feel the difference of having a stylish aircraft-based accessory
]]>Well, well, well..!
It’s been a few weeks since we last brought you a blog, but for a good few reasons. Firstly we needed to cool off a bit, releasing two blogs every week for nearly two months was drying the tank out slightly. That and mainly there hasn’t been much else happening.
However, everyone loaded up their social media and look in their post boxes this week to see that a very anticipated release was finally out.
The Guppy.
The Aero Spacelines Guppy was an aircraft specifically designed to carry larger than normal loads. For a long while they were used to transport parts for rockets on behalf of NASA, however this aircraft was also adopted by Airbus as a means to transport wings and engines (amongst other things) from outsourced factories to their central production line in Toulouse. You could even go as far to say that the Guppy was the forefather of the Beluga.
Onto the example we see in Aviationtag form, F-BTGV. This aircraft was the first of the type to be built, with serial number 0001. It was one of four used by Airbus, two of which were built by UTA Industries in France after Airbus bought the right to produce the aircraft.
The aircraft was retired in 1996, where it was then restored as a museum exhibit at Bruntingthorpe. Since then it has undergone several stages of refurbishment and renovation. The aircraft was open to the public for many years, and standing in the huge space in the fuselage was a very eye opening experience.
It was with great sadness to see the owning group moving the Guppy on to new owners, and even sadder to see such a historic aircraft be cut up, however not all is lost. As well as owning tiny pieces of this bizarre aircraft, fortunately the cockpit from F-BTGV has been saved, it’s new home being the South Wales Aviation Museum.
The tags themselves have huge variation between them. Some are bare metal printed, some are painted and engraved. The paint varies in condition and colour as well, owing to the livery being reapplied with different shades of paint to that of the original. 15000 editions have been cut, one of the largest we’ve seen for a long time, but easily understandable considering the size of the Guppy.
It’s nice to see a much more unique aircraft in the Aviationtag range, particularly one responsible for the growth of what is now one of the world’s leading aircraft manufacturers.
]]>Trijets are a peculiar thing. They offer a certain novelty that traditional twin or quad jets don’t, that being their distinctive look.
The trijet era was initiated by the introduction of the British made Hawker Siddeley Trident, and shortly after its American competitor, the Boeing 727. Both had certain unique qualities. The HS Trident had an offset nose wheel, primarily to accommodate the amount of avionics beneath the flight deck. The 727 had a rear seat of passenger stairs built directly into the tail of the aircraft.
These were not the only narrow body trijets however, with the Russian manufacturers wanting to get in on the action. In the late 1960s, Yakolev produced the Yak-40, which developed into the Yak-42. These were fairly small aircraft, mainly aimed towards regional traffic. Tupolev also created a slightly larger competitor to the 727, the Tupolev Tu154. Whilst it’s generally considered that passenger trijets still in service are rare, the Russian examples are somewhat rarer. They seldom fly into Western Europe owing to noise regulations, and having seen a handful of Tu154s flying, I’m not surprised.
It was only until the 1970s that a trijet design was considered for a wide body aircraft. Two designs competed against each other, the Lockheed L-1011 Tristar and the McDonnell Douglas DC-10. Ultimately it transpired that the DC-10 was the more popular aircraft. That being said however, for its time, the L-1011 was an incredibly sophisticated and technologically advanced aircraft.
Development of the DC-10 led to the creation of the MD-11, quite possibly the most iconic of the Trijets. The MD-11 took to the skies in 1988, offering more range, greater maximum take off weight and more seats. The MD-11 also featured a “glass cockpit”, eliminating the need for an on board flight engineer.
Whilst the L-1011 has pretty much been retired by every airline that had them in their fleet, it’s only been within the last few years that MD-11s were retired from passenger service, with KLM being the last airline to operate the type. Biman Bangladesh were the last operator to fly the DC-10 in passenger service. In both instances, farewell flights for enthusiasts were arranged. These days, however, the DC-10 and MD-11 find themselves busy with work from cargo airlines and air forces, with replacements steadily being phased in.
It’s impossible to ignore the impact that trijets have had on aviation. Their unique shape offers a distinctive amount of variety when looking across an airfield. Whilst I never got the opportunity to fly on one, I always enjoyed seeing the odd one or two at Manchester - there was a time where Lufthansa Cargo used to send them quite frequently.
A handful of companies have started producing memorabilia cut from trijet aircraft. MotoArt PlaneTags (alas, not something we stock here at Part Of A Plane) have cut tags from a former Aeroflot MD-11 as well as a Hawaiian Air L-1011 Tristar. Recently we were treated to the release of a former United Airlines DC-10 by Aviationtag, which has been well received by the community and been widely popular. We’d certainly like to see more added to the trijet range, particularly something else cut from a Lockheed example.
]]>“You can’t compete by copying rivals. You’ve got to create something better, much better...”
These are the words of Airbus founding father (or at least one of them), Roger Béteille, and they’re very poignant when you think about it. 50 years ago the aviation world was mainly dominated by Boeing, however changes were afoot in the small Southern France city of Toulouse.
Airbus broke the mould in 1972, creating the world first twin engine wide body aircraft - the Airbus A300, nearly 10 years before the inception of its direct competitor - the Boeing 767. The A300 also set a major trend that would grow to become the common standard in the industry, by using composite materials in the aircrafts construction. It was also one of the first types of aircraft to receive an ETOPS rating.
The aircraft was widely used by a number of airlines around the world, with 561 of the type being delivered by Airbus, however one of its few downfalls compared to other competing aircraft, was its smaller amount of range. That being considered, it would be safe to say the A300 was a success. So much so in fact, the general shape of the fuselage was recycled.
The A300 led to the development of the A310, a slightly smaller version of the A300, built to suit the demands of airlines who couldn’t quite fill the capacity that the A300 offered. Rather than spend the money to develop an entirely new aircraft to be designated as the A310, the fuselage of the existing A300 model was shortened.
This wasn’t the first instance of the fuselage shape being used more than once however. The A300s legacy lives on in the form of the A330 (and to a lesser extent the A340). The A330 features a much longer version of the original A300 fuselage, however with considerably different wings and power plants.
The A300 also underwent a huge conversion programme in order to turn it into a dedicated freighter for Airbus themselves, the A300-600ST “Beluga”. These were to replace Airbus’ Super Guppy aircraft, and were used to transport major components for other aircraft to Airbus’ various factories. These days they can be seen frequently flying to Hawarden near Chester, transporting wings to and from Europe.
These days, numbers of serviceable A300s are, understandably, quite low. Their age has meant a number of them have been relegated to cargo duties, with only a handful still flying in passenger service. The same can be said for the A310. Even the groundbreaking A300-600ST Beluga’s have since been replaced with specialist converted Airbus A330s.
Airbus are not normally associated as being major players within the “historical” sense of the aviation industry, their greatest claim to fame obviously lying in the worlds first double decked aircraft, the Airbus A380. That doesn’t mean to say that Airbus haven’t had their moments. The creation of the A300 being one of the biggest moments in the industry, is somewhat quite an understated one, unless you really read into the history of it.
Since their inception, Airbus have had a strong foothold in the market, offering direct competition to Boeing. Their innovation has pushed other manufacturers to also up their own games in order to compete with the European consortium, with varying degrees of effect.
Can we expect more memorabilia to become available from these classic Airbus types? Quite probably. The two Aviationtag releases (EC-DLH and CA-01) are extremely small - both only 1200 tags cut from each aircraft, and are widely considered some of the rarest tags available. Whilst there has already been a huge amount of Airbus releases, it would be extremely nice to see more of these Godfathers enter the market.
When you look at the entire range of tags that Aviationtag has produced, one fact is incredibly obvious - a large number of releases come from narrow body aircraft. Why is this?
Let’s look at the sorts of aircraft that come under the narrow body category, primarily the turbofan examples. 737s, 757s, the A320 family. All aircraft which are either life expired or have since had a newer version produced.
The 757, whilst extremely popular, has seen nearly 40 years service in the skies and in 2003, Boeing finally called it a day on the production of the 757. A large number of 757s are still in service as freighter aircraft, but their days as passenger liners are numbered. Their replacement? Boeing hasn’t really committed to creating a Next Generation version of the 757, and instead markets the 737MAX as a suitable replacement.
The 737, an even older design - with the 737 first flying in April 1967, has been replaced with the MAX version, offering better range and fuel efficiency. Despite the rocky start the MAX had, it’s numbers will continue to increase, and as a result the older versions of the 737 will gradually fill up the aircraft graveyards.
The A320 family has also seen a newer version come to life. Airbus announced its “New Engine Order” in 2010, offering two new generation turbofan engines to power the aircraft. The order book for the NEO filled up rapidly, with it outselling the 737MAX in most regions outside of North America. Some airlines have also been offered the choice to convert their “Current Engine Order” orders to NEOs.
As manufacturing methods, fuel efficiency and advancements in technology and range change and increase, the popularity of newer, greener and quieter aircraft will also increase. Subsequently the result of this is the older versions being retired sooner than would previously have been anticipated.
There are tag releases from A320 family aircraft dismantled at a very young age. Germania’s D-ASTZ flew for 12 years. British Airways’ G-EUOH was active for 18 years. China Eastern’s B-2400 had a lifespan of 15 years. Whilst smaller aircraft do have more a greater amount of take off and landing cycles, much larger compared to long haul aircraft, it’s astonishing to see so many aircraft cut up before even reaching 20 years old.
Wide body aircraft tags do hold a greater sense of history to them, but it’s impossible to ignore that the smaller aircraft have just as much pedigree to them, and realistically, I think it’s safe to say we can expect many more narrow body tag releases in the months and years to come.
]]>Being a German based company, it’s completely understandable that a number of Aviationtag’s releases have - in one way or another, come from former Lufthansa aircraft.
Personally this isn’t a huge problem for me. I adore Lufthansa. I adore Germany in general. However it’s national airline is something I feel German’s should be incredibly proud of. I really enjoyed their service when I flew with them to Munich and back a few years ago.
Lufthansa operate a mainly Airbus fleet (again, not a huge problem for me) but do still fly examples of the B747-8i and are the launch customer for the Boeing 777-9X. They’re current going through a process of fleet retirement and renewal, with aircraft such as the A340-600 being phased out and A350-900s brought in to replacement. The narrow body fleet is also going through changes, with A320 CEOs being changed for A320 NEOs.
We mention these aircraft specifically because they have featured as tag releases, primarily through the Lufthansa Worldshop - we’ll come to that shortly.
The first standard release came in the form of the super rare Boeing 747-400, D-ABVC. Research suggests this was in fact Aviationtag’s first ever release, and was available in a multitude of colours. This combination is probably why they’re so valuable.
The other release was Airbus A340-600, D-AIHR. D-AIHR came in dark blue, white and bicolour. It does however feature an incorrect engraving. The A340-600 carries Rolls-Royce Trent 500 engines, but the engraving on the tag is that of a CFM56, carried by the -200/-300 variant. As a result of this, it’s not been as popular with collectors, however holds it value in a weird way because of this error.
Owing to the partnership between Lufthansa and Aviationtag, there have been 3 releases exclusive to the Lufthansa Worldshop. The tags are also sold onboard Lufthansa aircraft. The Worldshop exclusives come in commemorative packaging, an extra cardboard presentation wallet.
Initially the only aircraft available was A340-600 D-AIHO. 20,000 tags were cut from the aircraft, and came in grey, white and dark blue. I bought them direct through the Worldshop, and was pleased to have my first full set of colours in my collection.
The second and third releases both came from Airbus A320s. D-AIPA (MSN 69) available in bicolour, dark blue and white, and D-AIPC (MSN 71) available in white and “coloured” - primarily black. The black tags come from the fact Papa Charlie was a Star Alliance liveried aircraft. There are a very small amount of full blue tags available cut from AIPC, the quantity is much smaller compared to AIPA, as there is considerably less blue used, as it carries a much smaller Lufthansa logo
I am lucky enough to own all the whole colour tags from both AIPA and AIPC, which majorly boosted my A320 family collection. If you’re considering purchasing any of the Lufthansa tags, I can thoroughly recommend them. The tags are fully licensed so feature Lufthansa branding, which is an extremely nice touch. I’m eagerly looking forward to seeing what other Lufthansa tags are released in the future. I think it would be very naive of anybody to think that Aviationtag won’t ever do another Lufthansa tag.
]]>We were extremely pleased to announce the release of both magnets and tags cut from former Olympic Airways 747-200 SX-OAD, but let’s have a look a bit about the aircrafts history.
The 747-200 variant was introduced in 1971, and offered greater range, increased maximum take off weight, and more powerful engines. It was, understandably, a step up from the -100 variant.
SX-OAD, or rather MSN21684, was delivered in August 1979, however actually started life belonging to Singapore Airlines, registered as 9V-SQI. It was only until April 1985 that it fell into the hands of Olympic Airways.
The aircraft then flew up until 2002, whereby it was then retired and stored at Bruntingthorpe in Leicestershire, but it’s life wasn’t quite at an end at the turn of the century.
SX-OAD also served as somewhat of an advertising piece. In 2006, supermarket chain Asda painted the aircraft in an Asda branded livery, primarily as something to astonish its staff during its Driver of the Year awards, and later for use in television commercials. At this point, the engines had been removed and the aircraft was given the “fake” registration of G-ASDA.
The former Olympian also found use as a gig venue in 2011 for Leicestershire based band Kasabian. Tickets were distributed via a ballot system, with the winners being told to meet in Leicester city centre where they were then bussed to Bruntingthorpe. The gig was used as a means to promote both their then upcoming album, as well as their impending UK tour.
After 18 years of lying dormant, the aircraft - with most of its interesting history being established whilst being stored, was finally disposed of, allowing Tailfins and ourselves the opportunity for you to purchase a piece of this rather interesting aircraft. Tailfins have manage to create 175 tags in this edition, making it the third largest tag release after G-CIVE and G-CIVM.
As well as tags, and in a bid to further expand the Tailfins product range, 40 magnets were also produced. This, alongside previous releases of cufflinks and coasters, means Tailfins’ products are suitable to an audience wider than those who simply collect tags.
Considering there are few examples of “classic” 747 variants being turned into memorabilia, it’s expected that this edition will sell out quickly, in both magnet and tag form, so if you’re after a piece, then we suggest getting your order in sooner rather than later.
]]>A couple of weeks ago I talked to you about my flying history, and whilst it brought back a lot of happy memories for me, it also made me realise something. If you look at the British aviation scene in the last 15 years or so, it’s astonishing to think of all the major airlines that no longer exist.
Let’s start with Air 2000, the first airline I ever flew with. Air 2000 was founded in 1987. It bought out rival tour operator Leisure Airlines (part of AirUK who ceased operations in 1998). By 2004, they had rebranded to First Choice Airlines.
Britannia (founded 1961) lasted a very long time before rebranding to Thomsonfly also in 2004. A year later, in 2005, Thomsonfly and First Choice Airlines merged to become Thomson Airways, and later, TUI Airways.
British Midland International started life in 1938. In 2002 it began operating a low cost operation which lasted 10 years. The international arm ceased also ceased in 2012, merging into British Airways. It’s regional services managed to survive until 2019, at which point they filed for administration.
Monarch Airlines also stemmed from the late 1960s. They were relatively successful up until 2004, where their operating model changed to a low cost carrier to compete with the likes of easyJet and Ryanair. They struggled from then on, with rumours of them being wound up appearing on the internet quite frequently. Eventually the axe fell on them in October 2017.
Airtours were a relatively young airline by comparison of the above. They were founded in 1990, becoming MyTravel Airlines in 2002. MyTravel suffered huge losses as a result of the September 11th attacks in New York. They merged into Thomas Cook Airlines in 2008.
Excel Airways were even younger than that. Starting life in 1994 as Sabre Airways, and absorbing Air Atlanta Europe in 2006, the airline had a relatively trouble free time in life, even winning awards for best charter airline numerous years in a row. The airline filed for administration and ceased operations in 2008.
Thomas Cook Airlines has a long and complicated history, existing as the result of several mergers and rebrands. Initially Thomas Cook was a rebrand of JMC Airlines, itself a merger of Flying Colours and Caledonian Airways. JMC started life in 2000, rebranding to Thomas Cook in 2003. The airline became one of the biggest competitors in British charter traffic, however ceased operations in 2019.
It’s mad to think that if you had travelled to Manchester airport to do some plane spotting, you would have seen all of these airlines with their individual fleets all in full revenue service. Now, the only one that remains is TUI.
The UK now only has 3 airlines that operate wide body aircraft, and only 5 major international airlines in general, a stark contrast to that of 15 years ago. Why? Because of the rise of competitive low cost / high frequency carriers like easyJet and Ryanair. Seemingly the future is not in one flight per day to one destination, instead, three or four flights per day with smaller aircraft.
]]>If you asked any person to name an iconic passenger aircraft, whether they’re interested in aviation or not, the chances are they’re going to give you one of two answers. Concorde or the Jumbo Jet. As we know, Concorde has been retired for nearly 20 years - a staggering thought on its own. The Jumbo Jet however has seen a gradual decline since the popularity of aircraft such as the Boeing 777-300ER and Airbus A350 has increased.
This decline increased substantially as the COVID pandemic hit, with a number of airlines storing or even scrapping the former “Queen Of The Skies”. Whilst incredibly sad, the fact is this day was always going to come. The 747 isn’t the only large aircraft to succumb to the cutter's torch. The Airbus A380 has also suffered the same fate, with nearly all flying examples withdrawn and only a handful of airlines announcing they intend to continue to fly the double decker in the future.
The fate of the A380 has been undecided for a number of years. Their size means the airports they can land at and be serviced is extremely limited. Airbus’ intention was that airports would upgrade their facilities to accommodate the huge airliner, but this has seldom been the case, with only a few major airports having to make minor changes to infrastructure. It has since come to light that the second hand market for the A380 as full aircraft, is almost nonexistent, with the demand instead lying in spare parts carrying significant value.
It would be reasonable to expect that as more of these gargantuan aircraft are cut up, companies like Aviationtag, Plane Tags and Tailfins will continue to add these to their product ranges. The 747 has had a number of releases from various manufacturers, however the stage is set for more A380 merchandise to come to light.
Whilst it kills me to see these beasts cut up, we should be thankful that companies exist to keep the memories of these aircraft alive, even if it is just by doing something simple like owning a small piece of it.
]]>Now I know a lot of people will probably be a bit tired of seeing 747 releases, but I think they are justified considering their history. And whilst they’re not one of my favourite aircraft ever, I can certainly appreciate the work they’ve done.
G-VAST followed the tradition of Virgin aircraft being named, being called “Ladybird”. MSN 28757 was delivered to the airline in 1997 and managed 23 years before being stored and cut up at St. Athan.
This release had a significant number of things going in its favour. It is only the third time we have had tags cut from a British civil airliner (G-CELR and G-EUOH), and after reading about how Virgin paint their aircraft, it would have been safe to assume that G-VAST would have the same sparkle that the likes of C-FCAG and A6-EID do.
We’re glad to say that this assumption was not wrong. The variations from this release were white, aubergine and bi-colour. The shades of the deep purple (sorry, aubergine) vary, as do the patterns and quantities of colour on the bicolour tag. The tags are all of a good thickness, owing to them being cut towards the top of the fuselage.
The special engraving on this edition is of a stylised Union Flag, similar to that that the Virgin “pin up girls” drape off their shoulders on the side of the aircraft. A very nice touch, and a suitable nod to Ladybird’s past life.
Understandably the aubergine tags sold out very quickly, and no doubt their value will significantly increase over the next few weeks and months. This means if you managed to get one on release day, you can rest assure that it will hold its value for many years to come.
Fortunately however, we do still have stock of the white tag available on our store page.
]]>In November 2020, we were positively treated by Aviationtag to an absolutely outrageous new addition. It came in the form of a retired TAP Air Portugal Airbus A330-200, CS-TOE. There was little to no evidence that would have led anybody to know it was going to be an A330 tag.
The release saw 3 coloured tags available - light red, light green and dark green. Bi-colour tags, as well as an extremely limited amount of whole dark red and whole white tags were available via raffle.
The tags were an instant success, particularly the lighter green and the light red, and are considered some of the best tags made to date. The engraving is crisp, the tags are all of a good chunky thickness, but the real joy about the CS-TOE tags are the colours themselves.
The tags were cut from a portion of the TAP logo. The light red glimmers in the light, much like the Air Canada C-FCAG or the Etihad A6-EID tags do. The light green is incredibly vibrant, so vibrant in fact I often refer to it as lime green.
So popular was the release of CS-TOE, Aviationtag treated us to another TAP A330 almost instantly. This came in the form of CS-TOI. There was a slight difference with CS-TOI in that it also featured an all white tag, which we were yet to have as part of a general population sale.
The rise in A330 tags has not gone unnoticed. For a long time, the only A330 tags available were that of a Windrose aircraft, UR-WRQ. Personally, I’m very glad to see more Airbus wide bodies in the range which up until now has been swamped with A330s.
Whilst the CS-TOE tags have more or less sold out now, you can still get yourself a piece of CS-TOI on our store page.
]]>This week, instead of bringing you news or a review about a tag, I thought I’d tell you a bit about my flying history. Aviation has been a passion of mine for a great number of years now, but that wasn’t always the case. There was a time when railways ruled my world, that was until I went on my first holiday abroad.
I must have been about 8 or 9 at the time, as I distinctly remember telling everyone in my class I was going away for a proper summer holiday. The honour of my first ever flight fell to a certain Air 2000 Boeing 757-200 from Manchester to Heraklion. I definitely remember how colourful it looked, as back in the early 2000s, Air 2000 was still carrying its “Tapestry” livery, a multitude of white, green, blue, yellow and red.
I was nervous getting on a plane for the first time, but as soon as those delicious Rolls-Royce RB211 engines spooled up for take off and I was glued to the back of my seat, I was hooked. My family then took several consecutive trips to Crete, mainly flying on Monarch. The black and gold livery of G-SMAN and the sheer size of an aircraft like the A330 (at the time, the biggest thing I had flown on) converted me into a huge Airbus fan from a very young age. We also flew with Britannia and Excel a few times, B767-300ERs mainly but Excel did surprise us one day with the slightly shorter B767-200 variant.
My flying history since then has been somewhat sporadic... As I got older I never really had the time or money to go abroad. When I was about 20, I decided I would fly with British Airways to Heathrow. I still had the flying bug well and truly in me. If you were to look at my entire flight history from 2013 onwards, none of it would be deemed as very exciting. Mainly A320 family aircraft within Europe. A couple of flights to Faro. Day trips to Belfast and Geneva. Long weekends in Berlin and Munich. There is however one flight that was very special to me - ZB300.
ZB300 was a farewell flight organised by Monarch to wave goodbye to their ageing Airbus A300 aircraft. G-OJMR took off from Gatwick and headed north. It did a 1000ft flyover of Manchester before turning east slightly and finally landing at Birmingham. Champagne was served on board and everybody left with a commemorative ticket and safety card. All in all it was a very nice, pleasurable flight even if it was only for an hour.
It was good to fly on an aircraft that has slowly faded away from passenger service in recent years, and every time I think about it, reminds me how lucky I was to get a ticket. It does however also make me think that I should try and fly on aircraft that don’t have long left in the skies. The chances are I will probably never fly on a B747, or an A340, and definitely not on any of the Tri-Jets.
Hopefully once the pandemic is well and truly over we can all get back to doing what we love, I for one will certainly be grateful to get back in the air, and needless to say, hopefully on Airbus.
]]>Some tags fall right into this category, and if you were to ask anyone in the community what they’d consider to be the rarer tags, you’d probably find startlingly similar answers.
So what makes a tag rare? To me, a rare tag is one that is not often seen for sale on the likes of eBay after the production run has sold out. Rarity can also come from it being a very limited amount of tags cut in the first place.
Case in point - The Iberia A300, EC-DLH. Only 1200 tags were cut from the Spanish flag carrier retro Airbus, making it an already extremely limited edition. In the short time I’ve started collecting, I’ve only seen 5 or 6 of these tags on eBay. Fortunately, I was lucky enough to win a tag from both EC-DLH and CA-01, but I daren't say how much I actually paid for them...
It’s a strange balance between supply and demand when it comes to rare tags. More often than not, demand is greater than supply, therefore pushing the prices up. This then means, if you really want one of the rarer tags, you’ve really got to stump up maybe two or three times more than what the tag retailed for.
You can find however that sometimes the logic of it being a low number of tags cut doesn’t always work. The Lufthansa B747 is one such example. 20000 tags cut, and yet they’re so sought after. Why? Mainly because it came in a variety of colours, and it’s impossible to ignore the significance of the Boeing 747. These Lufthansa 747 tags are rarely sold and when they are, it’s for hundreds if not thousands of pounds.
Collecting rarer tags is a hobby in it’s own right. The thrill of the chase hunting one down, hammering out a deal for it, culminating in the satisfaction of finally filling a hole in your display with something so… wanted… Whilst I enjoy it, I don’t like making a habit of it.
My advice? If you see a tag that’s still on general release, get it. Get it as soon as you can. You just never know when the day is going to come when they’re sold out and you wished you’d just bought one when you had the chance. There’s every chance that what once was common, becomes as rare as hens teeth...
]]>Last week we introduced you to Tailfins, and the day after, released Edition 5 - 200 keychains cut from what was British Airways’ Boeing 747-400, G-CIVE. This week we thought we’d get you all up to speed on Tailfins’ previous releases.
August 2020 - Edition 1 came in the form of British Airways Boeing 747, G-CIVG. Victor Golf was withdrawn and arrived at St. Athan in November 2019, after nearly 25 years of revenue earning service, having spent its entire life with British Airways. Only 25 tags were cut from this aircraft, and the edition sold out in only three and a half hours.
October 2020 - Edition 2 was another BA 747, this time the honour fell to G-CIVM. This batch watch considerably larger, consisting of 190 tags, available in a variety of colours and patterns. This variation was due to the different shades of reds and blues used to create the classic Union tail that British Airways have used since 1997. This was another rapid sell out, being available for only 24 hours.
November 2020 - Edition 3 diverged away from Boeing 747s, however stuck with a Boeing and British Airways theme. This time round, the aircraft in question was a Boeing 777-200 G-ZZZC. This unusual style of registration was chosen to represent the numbers 777. Zulu Charlie has quite the pedigree. It was the first of the type to be delivered to British Airways, and the sixth 777 to be delivered in the world. This release was limited to 110 pieces, consisting of blue and white whole colour as well as bicolour tags.
January 2021 - Edition 4 deviated from the norm of commercial airliners, and instead, the aircraft of choice for this release was a former Royal Air Force Panavia Tornado GR4, ZA449. These tags feature a unique honeycomb back. Why? The honeycomb pattern is used to maintain strength of the aircraft’s skin whilst also keeping it lightweight. Limited to 80 pieces, this edition really tested the manufacturing processes used, however the end result is sublime.
We hope this guide has been helpful to you, giving you a little bit more history behind some of the Tailfins releases.
The arrival of Aviationtags cut from an Alitalia Airbus A321 wasn’t something anybody immediately expected, however that isn’t to say it’s not a welcomed addition. I-BIXN first took to the skies for Alitalia in March 1996, and was retired in October 2019, making it quite an old bird with a 23 year lifespan.
It was made very clear upon release that only two variations would feature, whole green and whole white. Both are covered in this short review.
There’s a wide variety of A320 family tags that are available from Aviationtag. Whilst not the most famous aircraft in the world, it’s easily recognisable as being one of the biggest selling narrow body aircraft in history. Despite being grouped into the A320 family, tags from A321s specifically are few and far between, with only one other previous release being cut from the same type (Metrojet EI-ETK).
The two tags host the usual level of detail we’ve come to expect from Aviationtag. Since the release of G-EUOH, more attention to smaller details such as correct engines and trailing edge fairings has been paid to A320 family aircraft. These details are picked out perfectly in this release. 4000 tags have been cut from this aircraft - which seemingly is the current standard amount. From what I’ve seen, the quality of the tags is fairly consistent across the entire range, I’m yet to see a tag with any significant damage or scuffs as part of the manufacturing process.
The paint finish has a very glossy shine to it, equally noticeable on either tag. The green is a very deep shade, much darker to that of the Germania A319 releases. Initially I wasn’t overly convinced I liked such a dark shade of green, but it’s certainly grown on me the more I’ve looked at it. Depending on your tag, you might also notice that the engraving on the white edition has a slight green hue to it as well. It’s worth pointing out that it’s virtually impossible to get a “good” photo of the green tag. In the photo published here it looks very dark, whereas in the stock photo used for the product itself, it looks a lot lighter. It really does depend on what light you view the tag in.
It would appear that Aviationtag were able to secure image licensing for this release, as the cardboard backs feature a stylised version of the instantly recognisable Alitalia tail fin logo. As for the “logo” engraving on the tag itself, we have a shield design, similar to that of the badge on the Italian national football team shirt.
All in all, I’d argue this has generally been quite a successful release. It goes without saying that the green tags sold extremely quickly. I think some people may be a bit bored of A320 family tags, maybe the same can be said for white tags as a whole, but as mentioned earlier, this saves itself by specifically being an A321.
If you want a piece of Italian aviation history yourself, you can purchase your own on our store page.]]>Tailfins started in August 2020, and after some encouragement towards the initial concept, premiered with a limited run of key rings cut from former British Airways B747-400 G-CIVG.
The company started with quite wholesome intentions. The initial idea was to create memorabilia for collectors looking for something not mass produced, something more personal and made by a smaller company compared to the larger, more established tag manufacturers.
Ant, the founder of Tailfins, has a number of friends who were pilots and cabin crew that have since been furloughed, and the release of key rings made from their former workhorses means so much to them, which in turn means so much to Ant. It’s that personal connection Tailfins wishes to continue to establish.
Whilst release quantities aren’t as large as the more mainstream companies (not that that’s a bad thing), every effort is made to use as much of the source material as possible, whether that’s keychains, coasters or even cufflinks. Not only that, but a portion of the proceeds gained from each edition is also donated to charity, meaning that something as simple as purchasing some aircraft memorabilia will benefit worthy causes.
Here at Part Of A Plane, we fully support Ant’s mission and wish him every success for the future. We stock his products with an immense degree of pride, and continue to enjoy working with him for hopefully many years to come.
The next Tailfins release, cut from BA 747 G-CIVE, is due to hit our store page on Saturday 20th February at 7pm. Be quick, only 200 keychains from this iconic airliner are available.
]]>You might also be thinking, in an age where social media like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram is king and nobody has time to ever sit down and read something more than 140 characters, why are we bothering with a blog?
Since we started in 2020, we’ve been passionate about the brands we represent, both Aviationtags and Tailfins. We hope we can really show that passion through these blog posts, whether that’s through short tag reviews, news regarding new or forthcoming releases or even stories about our own personal collection.
We hope that we can bring something new and exciting to what is becoming an extremely quickly growing community. The popularity of aircraft memorabilia has increased so much in the last 12 months, particularly since the COVID pandemic caused the permanent storing and even retirement of iconic aircraft such as the Boeing 747 and Airbus A380.
Initially we shall be trying to bring you something new to read at least once a week, so keep your eyes peeled on Sunday evenings. The finer details of how everything will come together and be published have yet to be finalised, but with a bit of luck, this has caught your attention enough to come back and see what we can do.
And with that, we look forward to seeing you all and hearing your thoughts!
POAP
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