After a public contest and a panel of judges, we finally have a new Belgian Icon for Brussels Airlines. And if you’ve been to Brussels, you’ll recognise it instantly.
It’s The Atomium.
Thomas Faes with his winning design – Image, Brussels Airlines.
The Atomium is a landmark in Brussles. It was selected to become part of Brussels Airlines “Belgian Icon” series. It was chosen out of more than 900 submissions.
The design dedicated to the Atomium, was submitted by Thomas Faes (44), an architect living in Orp-Jauche (Brabant-Wallon, Belgium).
The building was designed and built for the Brussels World’s Fair (1958), for which it was the flagship building and emblem. The landmark was built as a tribute to scientific progress, as it symbolizes an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times. The monument was also intended to showcase Belgian engineering skills. It attracts over 800,000 visitors per year.
Brussels Airlines will now work with Thomas Faes to transform his design into a technical drawing that can be painted on an aircraft, and to create a design for the interior of the plane. The result will be presented to the public in Spring 2025.
In Quotes
Thomas Faes, designer of the next Belgian Icon
“A few hours before the project submission deadline, I decided to completely rework my proposal. I wanted the design to be truly universal. For me, the Atomium is the symbol representing Belgium. I have childhood memories of it, when on a school trip, I found myself in awe at the foot of this iconic monument. The brightness and mirror effect of the spheres allow everyone to see something different in it. As an architect, I tried to translate what I perceived with the naked eye into a more technical drawing. I am so proud that my Atomium project will soon take to the skies as part of the Brussels Airlines fleet.”
“It was a very interesting debate, and a tough decision to make. All the designs in the top 5 had great topics that would make great Belgian Icons. The Atomium was built for the World Expo in Belgium in 1958, and has been very popular to Belgians and tourists since. Bringing the best of Belgium to the world is a mission we support at Brussels Airlines. The Atomium is already visible in our uniforms, and our logo with nine dots is a nod to this iconic landmark. Making the Atomium the next Belgian Icon therefore feels like an excellent choice.”
“The Atomium was built as a symbol of Belgian creativity and innovation, and we’re thrilled to see it literally take flight as with this inspiring initiative by Brussels Airlines. This collaboration between two Belgian icons celebrates our shared role in the promotion of the Belgian tourism sector. As the image of the Atomium begins this new journey across cities, we hope it will inspire even more travelers everywhere to experience the wonder and spirit of Belgium firsthand.”
Expanding the Belgian Icons
The Belgian Icons programme has helped to show Brussels Airlines off to the world – to make flying a little more fun, to remind people there’s a lot more to the country.
And it’s nice to see something other than the white body of an aircraft with a swoosh of some sort on it.
Brussels Airlines’ first Belgian Icon, Rackham, was introduced in 2015 and pays tribute to Tintin, the world-famous Belgian comic. Earlier this year, Amare was presented which is the most recent Belgian Icon in cooperation with the music festival Tomorrowland. The third Belgian Icon currently in the fleet is Trident, the official plane of the Belgian Red Devils and Red Flames, respectively the male and female national football teams.
There were others previously, including:
- Magritte was part of the fleet between 2016 and 2021. The aircraft was a homage to René Magritte, the Belgian surrealistic painter.
- Aerosmurf smurfed the fleet between 2018 and 2023. This plane also took shape during a design contest organized by Brussels Airlines. Economy Class and Beyond covered the unique passenger experience this had.
- Flemish painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder, a Belgian icon from the 16th century, travelled the world between 2019 and 2023.
Like most things, there will be some time before we go from a drawing to a product on an aircraft – so Economy Class and Beyond will look forward to seeing this in 2025.
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