If you’ve ever seen a custom painted aircraft, then you know that a standard plane just won’t do it anymore. Some of these are so creative that it actually surprised us. Jumbo jets painted for business purposes, private jets painted however the owner wants, and the most intimidating military aircraft that exist!

Hey, the aircraft is clearly in the hangar. Let him relax and enjoy his cigar while he gets a tune-up, will ya? The aircraft is clearly in for some repairs, so why not take a drag of the ‘ol stogie? While this aircraft might not be in the best shape functionally, this paint job is a doozy.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Look at that. This shark face would make people with galeophobia wish they’d packed aircraft paint remover before traveling. However, we do feel that this scary airline paint job would have been more at home on a ship or better yet a submarine. We mean, sharks don’t fly, do they?
Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This Duracell batteries custom paint job on the front of what looks like a C-130 Hercules aircraft is a great one. We love the custom aircraft paint jobs that are so simple yet so effective – it looks just like a battery! Add in the fact that these Duracell AA batteries are going into a big bin for Toys for Tots donations makes it all the more cooler.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Did you know the interior and exterior paint on the Galaxy C-5 weighs 2,600 pounds alone? Here is a funny photo found on Pinterest, apparently from the Canadian forces. They turned a Galaxy C-5 aircraft into a flying mater with a custom paint job…and we can’t stop laughing at how well it works.
Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!






During the 2003 NATO Tiger Meet – a multi-national training exercise that has been going on for over 50 years – the world was introduced to this bad boy. The Mirage 2000RDI 83/12-YL from the host unit EC 1/12 that you see here was granted one of the coolest aircraft paint jobs we’ve ever seen. See how detailed it has been done, including the glint in the tiger’s eyes.
Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This is a French Dassault Rafale M fighter jet painted with the look of an ‘Arctic Tiger’. Compared to the last big cat-themed fighter jet, how do you like this one? The custom painted Dassault Rafale is intimidating, that’s for sure. We love how the white and black of the entire aircraft makes the red eyes pop that much more.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This sweet old-school military aircraft looks about as real as the shark from Jaws. Joking aside, this is a well-done paint job. If Santa’s Reindeers were actually A-10 Warthogs, then the next aircraft is how Christmas Eve would look…

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

What a beauty! The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II paint scheme seen here is one of the rare times when the Warthog isn’t in it’s classic battle-gray color jobs. Complete with reindeer, Christmas wreaths and the red and green coloration we’ve come to associate with the holidays.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Ukrainian plane manufacturer Aeroprakt Company customized this A-22 with a wooden steampunk look. We can dig it. Now, the next aircraft isn’t the custom AH-64 helicopter that the Dutch used in their displays, but we wish it were…click through to see the wildest helicopter we’ve ever seen.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Technically speaking, the Mil Mi-24 is a large artillery helicopter and attack helicopter with low capacity for troop transport. Variants of the Mi-24 include the Mi-25 and Mi-35 export versions. But realistically speaking, the Mi-24V custom painted aircraft of the Hungarian Air Force is the most attractive, fun and intimidating helicopter we’ve ever seen.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Who says the age of air superiority fighters is over? Certainly not Saab. Their latest high-tech aircraft is the Saab Gripen. What a paint job on those wings! Featuring a sleek delta wing shape and an aggressive canard, the JAS 39 is meant to be a fourth generation fighter that can go toe-to-toe with fifth generation counterparts.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Yet another aircraft that got all dolled up for the NATO Tiger Meet, this beauty came home with some hardware. In 2016, NATO Tiger Meet was held is Zaragoza, Spain, where the aircraft you see here, titled “Tiger Hind” ended up as the Winner of the Best looking Tiger Aircraft award.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

The much-talked about, little-seen CF-18 Demo Jet from the Royal Canadian Air Force. This custom-painted fighter jet has the hallmark red and white of Canada with an artistic rendition of the maple leaf – the de facto symbol of our northern brethren. The CF-18 top speed is a whopping 1,127 miles per hour.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

That’s more like it! The A-10 we’ve all come to know and love, but with a twist. We’ve all seen the classic Warthog, but these olive drab green with the nose paint job is worth a little something extra. This A-10 paint scheme is just mean! Would hate to be on the receiving end of this bad boy.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This plane is the brainchild of a collaboration between Rossi’s Airlines and Amur Tiger centre. The plane, a Boeing 737, has a stunning Amur Tiger on its nose. The painting needed about 500 kilos of paint to complete and that tells you just how huge it is.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

What you’re looking at here is one of the several members of an exciting fleet of aircraft called Nokair. But more precisely what you’re looking at is a Boeing 737-800 painted like a duck. If you’re familiar with the airline, you know that this is just one of their fun, kooky custom aircraft paint jobs.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Ah, yes…the ‘ole single-prop, two-passenger aircraft painted and shaped like a rooster. You see these all the time, don’t you? Honestly though, we can’t tell if this is amazing or the worst aircraft we’ve ever seen. Jury says: amazing. The attention to detail on the head of the aircraft/rooster is nothing short of impressive.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Weighing in at 91,000 lbs and stretching 129 feet long. Alaska Airlines has created the world’s largest flying salmon. The Boeing 737-800 is said to be the most intricately painted commercial aircraft on the planet.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

The Saab 35 was built in Sweden and was the first Western European supersonic aircraft. Saab manufactured these aircraft from 1955 to 1974. We gotta say, we love the red paint job on this one. Our next aircraft is uhhh….not quite as simple, if you will. Just see for yourself.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This Dassault Rafale is part of the Hellenic Airforce in Greece. Living up to the unit’s name, underneath the aircraft is a painting of Saint Michael. He is known as the archangel that will lead heaven’s army against the devil in Revelations.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

The Concorde! You’ve heard of this legendary aircraft before, probably because of its monster speed. The Concorde top speed goes upwards of Mach 2. But here’s the funny thing about this Pepsi aircraft and custom paint job – the livery on the classic Concorde has to be white in order for the aircraft to go full speed.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

The private jet seen here is one of the most unmistakable planes to ever grace the skies. Named “Dream Chaser 5,” the Lear Jet model 35, the Lear Jet was donated by International Jet Aviation, an aircraft charter and management company based in Denver. This particular aircraft was used to ferry seriously ill children all over the world, depending on their particular wish.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This gnarly Gulfstream GV operated by Clay Lacy Aviation is appropriately titled, “SexyJet”. The chameleon-like coloration of this custom Gulfstream is one-of-a-kind, and not cheap either. The Gulfstream GV jet cabin includes a full-sized galley, equipped for cold and hot food preparation; power outlets for office equipment; fold-out work tables; and private lavatory.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

“We hit him right as we were coming over Seattle, heading for the lower 48…how are we going to tell everyone?” – said the imaginary pilot about the imaginary incident that included Santa Claus being hit by a Boeing jumbo jet. This is a funny one.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

And when it comes to incredible custom paint jobs on commercial aircraft – All Nippon Airline DOES. This is just incredible, not one but three Star Wars themed airplanes. These ANA aircraft with custom painted graphics are such a cool idea, and anytime you can pepper Star Wars into your product you’re bound to increase your fanbase.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

The A330-900 is a monstrous plane! With a passenger aircraft that size, this thing could probably catch covid several times over on it’s way across the Atlantic Ocean. The paint work is exquisite though, look at the detail on the edges of the mask.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Southwest Airlines hit the nail on the head with this one. Southwest planes do a lot of traffic through Denver, so pandering to the state of Colorado is a good idea. Southwest flights departing Denver just got a whole lot cooler with this custom painted Southwest aircraft.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Gulfstreams are private jets that are extremely expensive. Wait, scratch that. There are no cheap private jets, so let’s just say this Gulfstream G550 is a jet, which is pretty obvious, right? But this jet isn’t a normal jet painted in white or grey— this jet is several coats of paint more.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

The great star of the aircraft painting on this plane is Tinkerbell from Peter Pan. But do not be deceived. This isn’t a Tinkerbell only gig. This plane had this look commissioned as a result of a partnership between Alaska Airlines and Disneyland.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Listen, we’re going to be honest – we have no idea what’s going on here. The one thing we know is that this is a Short SC-7 Skyvan 3-100, but beyond that we have absolutely no clue about what is happening. The teeth are oversized, the lips are weird, the color scheme is funky and if you look close enough – it’s missing a tooth, whatever it is.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

The Warthog is as intimidating as humanly possible for an aircraft can be. It has a canon the size of a small car, and is a bad news to enemy forces. But we aren’t here to talk about guns and canons. We’re here to talk about paintings, and the design on the mouth of this plane traces its origins to a world war II tradition.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

The British Aerospace Hawk T.1A utilized by the Royal Air Force of the United Kingdom has one of the more patriotic (is it patriotic if it’s not the United States?) paint jobs we’ve seen. The Hawk T1 is a British-built single engine jet trainer with a two-man tandem cockpit.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

The F-15E fighter jet from the Oregon National Guard painted like a bald eagle is an elite custom aircraft paint job. The F-15 Eagle is an air superiority jet fighter with an unparalleled record of performance in air-to-air combat.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Rolling out of the Airbus Paintshop in Hamburg, Germany, is the first of three A380 for All Nippon Airways (ANA). It’s bearing the airline’s distinctive and unique Hawaiian sea turtle livery. ANA is the first customer for the superjumbo in Japan and all three ANA A380s will be painted in the custom aircraft paint job you see here, depicting sea turtles which are native to Hawaii.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This is a butterfly inspired aircraft paint scheme, made for a private prop plane out in Arizona. The yellow, orange and red gradient contrasts well with the blue framed angles on the wings. It’s not quite Pepsi blue, but it’s a nice blue. Speaking of Pepsi…

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Sukhoi Su-57. The digi-camo paint job on this Russian fighter jet is maybe the sleekest aircraft paint scheme on this list – if not of all time. Now, if you follow the U.S. Air Force closely, you may have seen a recent USAF F-16 paint job that looks eerily similar to this one.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

What’s better looking than a thirty foot Buzz Lightyear painted on the side of a plane? Not very many things, we’d wager. China Eastern Airlines, in partnership with Pixar, gave this plane a stunning makeover that looks utterly stunning.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Sure, you love Star Wars. But do you love the franchise enough to have it painted on a plane? Not very many people do. However, All Nippon Airways clearly does. After signing a licensing deal with Disney, the Airline launched its Star Wars-themed plane. Hmm, we wonder which aircraft painter did this job.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Obviously, with the kangaroos all over the aircraft – you’d expect this to be an Australian aircraft. Qantas is one of the premier jetliners in the largest island in the world. Officially speaking, “Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia and its largest airline by fleet size, international flights and international destinations.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Unlike many other aircraft on this list, this isn’t a passenger plane. Well, it is, but it isn’t a regular one. This is an M2 Charter Jet and could be called a private jet in some circles. And yes, even though it looks like the work of a 6-year-old, this Aircraft painting is actually real.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Okay, let’s tell you this. If you have plans of painting a scene from frozen on your plane, you’d need about a hundred and seventy gallons of paint in over twenty-three different colours. At least we know that’s what Canadian airline WestJet needed to complete this stunt airline painting.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Mig-21. If the A-10 Warthog had a little brother who isn’t quite as good at school or sports or painting, this would be it! We love the yellow. We’re still undecided on the rest of it.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This is a side by side view of the Su-57 from Russia (top) and the F-16 from the U.S. Air Force. Pretty similar, huh? Smells like roses in here, huh? It’s about to…

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Savvy, handsome and private – just like a jet should be. The baby blue private jet with flowers and crows is about as good looking as a private jet custom paint job could possibly be. It’s certainly no whale like the next one…

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This aircraft doesn’t just have a great paint job, it also has an uncanny resemblance to what is painted on it. The Beluga whale looks almost exactly like this Airbus (except for the wings, of course). Without a doubt, the aircraft painter commissioned for this job has brought out that similarities between both beings expertly.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This aircraft was given this makeover as part of Icelandair’s “Icelandair Stopover” campaign. The beautiful colours of the plane showcase the famed Northern lights. This natural phenomenon is what makes the country so famous, and it appears they just wanted to show it off to the world.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

F-16 Viper Demo Team. These pilots are insane! If you’ve never seen the F-16 demo team, you need to look up their schedule and attend one near you soon. The maneuverability on these fighter jets in incredible. Oh, and the black mamba viper paint job is pretty slick, too.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming…that’s what the Nemo-themed aircraft is all about. If you’ve seen the movie Finding Nemo, than this is an obvious custom painted plane. Well done, too. This beauty is operated by Pink Aviation, in the Czech Republic; and the aircraft you’re looking at is a Short SC-7 Skyvan 3-100.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This fighter jet is actually a part of the Italian Air Force’s aerobatics squad. The dragon paint job is essentially a marketing ploy to get the people in the door and then BOOM, the pilots knock the audience’s socks off with incredible flight skills. Looks pretty cool to me!

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Royal Netherlands F-16 Fighter Jet. The Royal Netherlands Air Force has quite the collection of loud and colorful aircraft on their aerobatics display teams. The Dutch Demoteam utilized (they are no longer in service) used the fighter jet F-16 and the AH-64D Apache Solo Display Team uses the helicopter AH-64 Apache.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Woah. This Swiss International Airlines passenger plane is certainly destined for greener pastures! They’re really setting the tone with this paint job. Telling the customers, “You are going somewhere pretty and tranquil, get in the mood. Now.”

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

A partnership as old as time. This wild orca-themed paint job is simple yet effective. No major designing to do, just a couple of colors and crucial outlines of the facial features and voila – the orca aircraft! SeaWorld transports massive whales and fish in airplanes. Did you know that?

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Now this is commitment to the craft. The complete paint work on this sea-faring aircraft is impressive. We’d love to see this bad boy in action! A tiger landing on the water – how many times have you seen it in your life? This is some impressive detail and what’s more is that it is painted head to toe. Love it.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Birdplane. That’s what we’re going with here. Star bald eagle on the front, general bird on the rest. Two propellors and a wicked set of colors complete the ensemble and I’m not going to lie – looks like freedom to me.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This F-15 is so slick! It belongs to the Oregon National Guard and they fly it in aerobatics and marketing events almost exclusively. I like how they let the nose of the plane remain in it’s original color – it almost makes the other paint work pop even more.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Mush! This bear-y cool sled-dog and Alaskan wilderness themed airplane paint job is forward thinking. Well, forward-moving at least. Commercial airliners with cool paint schemes are cooler than the private jets in our opinion.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Two of every animal, all aboard! This Emirates aircraft is still probably louder than all this animals combined. Based in Garhoud, Dubai, the airline is a subsidiary of The Emirates Group, which is owned by the government of Dubai’s Investment Corporation of Dubai.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Next stop: Mount Doom. Imagine if Frodo and the gang could’ve boarded a plane to Mordor. How cool would that have been and useless would that movie become if that was the case. Anyways, cool plane! Either this is meant to attract some kids and teenagers to become life long fans of this airline – or it’s the official airline of the movie set.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Can you imagine showing up to the airport and YOUR MODEL PHOTOS ARE ON THE SIDE OF AN AIRCRAFT!? That would be so cool. At least we think so! This is the official Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition company jet. And in true fashion – they’re advertising their best assets.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

This looks like Heath Ledger’s “The Joker” private helicopter. What an odd, but honestly unforgettable, helicopter paint job. It looks like someone on psychedelics decided to get 40 gallons of paint and just go to town. At least they’re artistic and it isn’t some complete wack job of a paint job!

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

These jets are probably the oldest on this list, and they’ve been in operation since the 90s. The first plane was released in 1998, and the reception from the market was so great that the airline released yet another Pokémon plane.

Up Next: More awesome aircraft paint jobs!

Alaskan Airlines In 2018, Alaska Airlines repainted one of their planes. This was done to get in the spirit of the release of the movie Incredibles 2.

The repainted plane featured the Incredibles on its fuselage alongside the famous Alaskan airline Eskimo. We suspect that the sight of this plane would have made many children happy. However, some grumpy adults would have wished they had an aircraft paint remover with them!