Idle question about aircraft in movies

Although I'm not a pilot, I find it fun to jot down the tail numbers
of airplanes I see in movies and TV shows, then look them up to see
what kinds of planes they are and where they're based. (Or at least,
where their owners are based. Airplanes are notoriously peripatetic. ;-))

Sometimes the plane's usual company logo is replaced by a logo that's
appropriate to the show in which it's appearing. E.g., in "Batman
Begins," there's a Gulfstream that has a Wayne Enterprises logo.

I assume that these days, those logo replacements are all being done in
post-production. After all, that's a lot easier than actually repainting
the plane! (I guess they could use those temporary decals, but again, that
seems like more trouble and expense than doing it digitally.)

My question is, while the computer jockeys are fiddling with the livery,
why do they bother leaving in the tail number? Just to make the plane
look more authentic? Contractual agreement with the owners to publicize
their plane? Anyone know?


Patty

In article ,
Patty Winter wrote:

I assume that these days, those logo replacements are all being done in
post-production. After all, that's a lot easier than actually repainting
the plane! (I guess they could use those temporary decals, but again, that
seems like more trouble and expense than doing it digitally.)

A temporary vinyl decal is alot cheaper then doing it in post-production,
and 'automatically' looks correct in every shot. Adding it in post, they
need to worry about getting the angles of everything right, shadows, etc.

My question is, while the computer jockeys are fiddling with the livery,
why do they bother leaving in the tail number? Just to make the plane
look more authentic? Contractual agreement with the owners to publicize
their plane? Anyone know?

In most cases, the computer jockeys are probably not fiddling with
it, so no chance to take out the tail numbers. The tail numbers
are probably left in since so few people even know how to look them
up, and even fewer take the time to do so.

I know for the movie 'Air Force One', they rented a cargo 747 and
painted it up as AF1. It caused a bit of confusion when it showed
up at various airports without POTUS and friends.

John
--
John Clear - http://www.clear-prop.org/

In article ,
John Clear wrote:

A temporary vinyl decal is alot cheaper then doing it in post-production,
and 'automatically' looks correct in every shot. Adding it in post, they
need to worry about getting the angles of everything right, shadows, etc.

Ah, thanks for the correction. I didn't realize that digital changes
were that complicated.

I know for the movie 'Air Force One', they rented a cargo 747 and
painted it up as AF1. It caused a bit of confusion when it showed
up at various airports without POTUS and friends.

I'll bet it did!


Patty

"Patty Winter" wrote in message
...
I know for the movie 'Air Force One', they rented a cargo 747 and
painted it up as AF1. It caused a bit of confusion when it showed
up at various airports without POTUS and friends.

Yeah, I bet there were some puzzled people. Not least because, as I
understand it, Air Force One is not a specific aircraft, but the callsign
for an aircraft that happens to be carrying the POTUS. So this thing would
be flying all over the place under a boring old call-sign (which,
presumably, AF1 could do when the POTUS wasn't on board). Similarly, you
have lesser designations such as Air Force Two, etc, for less senior VIPs.

If that's true, wouldn't it be kinda fun if the POTUS was learning to fly?
"Ah, Washington Tower, Air Force One, Cessna 152, hangar 12 apron, request
taxi" ...

(And aren't there two 747s done out all posh, incidentally?).

D.

On Wed, 3 Aug 2005 11:17:57 +0000 (UTC), "David Cartwright"
wrote:

If that's true, wouldn't it be kinda fun if the POTUS was learning to fly?
"Ah, Washington Tower, Air Force One, Cessna 152, hangar 12 apron, request
taxi" ...

Depending on who actually owned the 152, the call sign would probably be
"Executive One" or even "General Aviation One." The plane is called "Air Force
One" only when it's an Air Force aircraft...hence Marine One for the
helicopters, "Navy One" when he flew onto the carrier in the S-3, etc.

Ron Wanttaja

"Patty Winter" wrote in message
...
I know for the movie 'Air Force One', they rented a cargo 747 and
painted it up as AF1. It caused a bit of confusion when it showed
up at various airports without POTUS and friends.

(just for the record, that wasn't my quote.)

In article ,
David Cartwright wrote:

(And aren't there two 747s done out all posh, incidentally?).

Yes. AF 28000 and AF 29000.

http://www.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?fsID=131

I live near a federal airfield, so I've seen AF1 a number of
times. I'm not close enough to be able to read the tail number
with my bincoculars, though. I've also seen AF2; in fact, I
have a photo of both of them in the air after they took off
from Moffett Field once, one shortly after the other. I've also
seen Marine 1. I don't know how many of those there are, or how
they're transported from city to city to be available to the
president when he's visiting a certain area.


Patty

David Cartwright wrote:

If that's true, wouldn't it be kinda fun if the POTUS was learning to fly?
"Ah, Washington Tower, Air Force One, Cessna 152, hangar 12 apron, request
taxi" ...

if the POTUS were riding a civilian aircraft, the proper callsign
would be 'Executive One', wouldn't it?

--Sylvain

"David Cartwright" wrote in message
...

Yeah, I bet there were some puzzled people. Not least because, as I
understand it, Air Force One is not a specific aircraft, but the callsign
for an aircraft that happens to be carrying the POTUS.

Air Force One is not the callsign for an aircraft that happens to be
carrying the POTUS, it is the callsign of any USAF aircraft that happens to
be carrying the POTUS.



If that's true, wouldn't it be kinda fun if the POTUS was learning to fly?
"Ah, Washington Tower, Air Force One, Cessna 152, hangar 12 apron, request
taxi" ...


The USAF does not operate the C152 and the POTUS already knows how to fly.



(And aren't there two 747s done out all posh, incidentally?).


The USAF operates two VC-25As, based on the Boeing 747-200B, to provide air
transport for the President.

"Ron Wanttaja" wrote in message
...

Depending on who actually owned the 152, the call sign would probably be
"Executive One" or even "General Aviation One."


When the President is aboard a civil aircraft, any civil aircraft, the
callsign is "Executive One."

"Sylvain" wrote in message
...

if the POTUS were riding a civilian aircraft, the proper callsign
would be 'Executive One', wouldn't it?


Yes.