Delta Aircraft Livery

Timeline of Delta aircraft paint schemes since 1929. For more information, see this 1997 Delta Digest article.

The Beginning: Unique Livery for Each Aircraft Model
Travel Air S-6000-B

[ black and orange paint scheme ]
Stinson Model T

[ navy with fire engine red cheat line ]
Stinson Model A

[ blue and orange paint scheme ]
 
Polished Metal Emerges: 1935-1940
Lockheed 10 Electra

[ Delta logo on metal ]
Douglas DC-2

[ Blue lines, Delta logo on metal ]
Red, White and Blue: 1940-late 1940s
Douglas DC-3

[ Red/white/blue on fuselage ]
Douglas DC-4

[ Red/white/blue on fuselage ]
Douglas DC-6

[ Red/white/blue on fuselage ]
 
"White Cap" Paint Scheme: late 1940s-1960s
Variation: From 1953-1955, aircraft marked "Delta-C&S" to indicate Chicago and Southern Air Lines' 1953 merger with Delta.
Variation: Gold crown on Douglas DC-7 tails signified all-first class "Golden Crown Service" flights in 1958.
Convair 440

[ White paint on top half of fuselage ]
Lockheed 749 Constellation

[ Delta-C&S markings ]
Douglas DC-7

[ "Golden Crown Service" markings ]
 
Early Jets: Unique Livery for Each Model
Douglas DC-8-11

[ modernized "white cap" scheme ]
Convair 880

[ all-white fuselage, crown on tail ]
Douglas DC-9-14

[ sideways widget scheme ]
 
Widget Livery: 1962-1997

Introduced on Delta's first DC-8-51 in Spring 1962.
Became the standard paint scheme for Delta's aircraft fleet in 1967.
Lockheed L-1011

[ 2 red and blue triangles ]
 
1997 Livery
McDonnell Douglas MD-11

[ blue/red tail, "Delta Air Lines" ]
 
2000 Livery
Boeing 777

[ Flowing fabric tail, "Delta" and soft widget ]
McDonnell Douglas MD-88

[ Return to traditional widget, 2004 ]
2007 Livery
Boeing 777

[ 3-dimensional red widget]