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This year the Belgium
1st Squadron - the Stingers - based in Florennes, Belgium celebrated
their 100th anniversary by commissioning an aircraft with a special
livery design from Didier Wolff and Happy Design Studio.
A one of a kind, the
aircraft has recently been seen at some of the most prominent
airshows in Europe including: the Royal International Air Tatoo, the
Nato Days at Ostrava and St-Dizier meeting de l'air de la Base
arienne 113.
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Commissioned
to deliver the best possible design for the Belgium
based F17c for this very special anniversary, Didier Wolff
created and supervised the painting of the new livery
which went through the usual validation steps in
approximately 2 months.
The thistle,
the stingers emblem, echoing the squadron's name, has
been redesigned, sharper than ever, and is displayed on
the tail in a black and white scheme, discretely framed
within the tail's shape as to reinforce its sharpness.
The geometrical and symmetric lines covering the fighter's
body was a mathematical challenge to create the
perception of straight lines when they are in fact
curved.
Happy
Design Studio took care of the entire project in order
to prepare for the painting of the aircraft. From design
to final delivery, the technical paint schemes, the
calibration of colours, suppliers and stencils
productions. The Blackbird 4's new livery was painted in
6 days with a total commitment from each team member and
full support from the base. |
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The spirit of the
squadron is sustained by its latin moto: "Nemo me impune lacessit"-
no one provokes me with impunity - by its name, the stingers
squadron, and by the thistle, when these are all combined they
create a very strong and powerful image. Such spirit and history had
to be naturally revealed through the livery design. In creating the
design Didier Wolff brought out all that was important to the team
and made them proud of the new aircraft livery.
Didier is used to
working for military squadrons. He started with the French 1/12
Squadron Cambresis when hosting the 50th anniversary of the Tiger
Meet. This showcased the studio's first fighter livery, a mirage
2000c tiger inspired for the occasion. He also created a still
remembered livery, designed for the French Air Base113 StDizier
Squadron's Rafales for their 30,000 cumulated flight hours. |
