Case Study

American Airlines: Cadet Academy

American Airlines: Cadet Academy Hero Image of Pilot Character with Plane.

American Airlines

We were very excited when American Airlines came to us to help launch their newest pilot recruiting program: Cadet Academy. This program is designed so prospective pilots with little or no flight experience can begin their career track in a much less complex way. Our goal was to find a way to introduce it to potential candidates and get them excited about the opportunity.

We started with the storyline, because we had to convey a lot of information. Once we had the solid (and approved) script direction, we moved forward.

Our Process

Designing the look

As we thought about the look of this piece we wanted it to be relatable, but also fun.  Becoming a pilot requires intense training and we wanted this piece to convey that, but more over it needed to convey the information about how to get started with the Cadet Academy. 

With a piece that already had to be a bit longer in length, our goal was to keep people engaged throughout. We wanted to show a pilot in his early stages, in street clothes move from someone interested in aviation - to a pilot.

So we sketched.

  • Aa Pilot Sketch
  • Aa Planes Sketch
  • Aa Pilot And Aa Sketch
  • Aa Pilot At Plane Sketch

Illustration Process

Once we'd landed on a better idea of the storyline, and how we wanted the flow and look to be; applying the final design look to this piece came together beautifully. And quickly. We had to fully design this piece in a very short amount of time based on a launch deadline.

  • Aa Illus Guy
  • Aa Illus Card
  • Aa Illus Planes
  • Aa Illus Dallas
  • Aa Illus Heads

Cadet Academy

The Largest Airline in the World

Working with the largest airline in the world is pretty special. What makes it even more special is that we get to work with a team at American that truly understands, and appreciates creativity. We are looking forward to sharing much more from this fantastic partnership!