Speedbird is a call sign used by British Airways during air traffic control procedures, as well as the name for the stylised Imperial Airways and later, British Overseas Airways Corporation emblem.
The logo was first used by one of BOAC's predecessor companies, Imperial Airways, debuting in 1932. A simple, yet rather avant-garde design, it appeared on the nose section of the company's aircraft. With the creation of BOAC in 1939, the logo was retained, and still appeared on aircraft throughout World War II, despite the military-style camouflage that replaced the livery.
The actual design was by Theyre Lee-Elliott, a graphical artist working in London in the 1930s. He also did posters for the London Underground at the time, which also incorporate then-stylish minimalist art forms.
The logo became more prominent under BOAC, initially appearing on the nose, then from 1950 on the aircraft tailfin. In the mid-1960s it was enlarged and slightly altered in shape, and coloured gold. With the advent of air traffic control and the adoption of call signs to identify aircraft and their operators, BOAC chose the name of their logo to represent their aircraft in the air — Speedbird.
In 1974, BOAC was merged with British European Airways and others to form British Airways. As well as the call sign, the speedbird logo was retained unaltered, but returned to the nose section of the aircraft. A prominent Union Flag design now occupied the tailfin.
As British Airways prepared for privatisation, a new corporate look was adopted in 1984, which included altering the appearance of the Speedbird logo for the first time. Referred to as the Speedwing, it became a red flash on the lower dark blue part of the fuselage, though still bearing a resemblance to the original 1930s design.
Another corporate identity revamp in 1997 saw the logo evolve once more: it became a stylised ribbon shape (coloured red on the top side and blue on the bottom). It is officially known as the Speedmarque and was initially surrounded in some controversy, associated with the introduction of a multitude of "world design" tail fins that replaced the Union Flag on all aircraft except Concorde.
Speedbird continues to be used by British Airways as a call sign, although British Airways domestic services use the call sign Shuttle. BA subsidiary company BA Connect used British as its call sign before the sale to Flybe, and BA franchise operators continue to use their own call signs, despite operating BA flights. BA Christmas charter flights use Santa instead of Speedbird.
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