Skip to content

Behind the Scenes of United's New Air-to-Air Livery Shoot

May 15, 2019
1 min read
Screen Shot 2019-05-15 at 12.09.34 PM
Behind the Scenes of United's New Air-to-Air Livery Shoot
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don’t cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Daily Newsletter
Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily newsletter
Join over 700,000 readers for breaking news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG’s experts

Last month, United unveiled its brand-new aircraft livery. While it could take up to seven years to repaint the entire fleet, at least one repainted aircraft — N37267, a Boeing 737-800 — is flying passengers around the US. Just before it re-entered service, though, United flew the plane out to Los Angeles (LAX) for a spectacular air-to-air photo shoot.

United enlisted the help of Wolfe Air Photography and the company's special Learjet 25B aerial photography jet, which served as the "chase plane" and met the United 737 some 17,000 feet above the West Coast.

United posted a special video detailing the shoot, which includes a variety of formation-flying maneuvers, with the planes flying as close as 10 feet apart.

Los Angeles-based Roger Tonry served as the photographer for United's shoot, but we had a chance to chat with one of his colleagues, Chad Slattery, another top aerial photography pro. Slattery gave us an inside look at the process, which requires a tremendous amount of skill and coordination. Don't miss our detailed post, How Corporate Aviation Photographers Get Their Amazing Shots, for more on how a shoot like this works.