United Plans Return to the “Friendly Skies”

A United plane landing at JFK

One of the most iconic taglines in aviation will return on Sunday when United Airlines once again urges travelers to “fly the friendly skies.”  The slogan was used by the airline from 1965 until 1966 and will reappear in a campaign set to begin Sunday.  The campaign will also feature George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” which United has been using since 1987.

United will begin airing commercials with the slogan on the season premiere of “60 Minutes,” the Emmy Awards, and several sporting events.  The message will include how friendly the airline is, from “legroom friendly” to “shut-eye friendly.”

United merged with Continental Airlines in 2010, a fusion that created the world’s largest airline.

Leo Burnett created the “fly the friendly skies” tagline in the mid-1960s.  Many people today continue to associate the tagline with the airline and United is hoping to capitalize on that after having a year that its CEO, Jeff Smisek, termed “the toughest year of our merger integration,” going on to say that “[W]e are absolutely not satisfied with the financial results we produced last year.”

(Photo: Accura Media Group)