Duncan Aviation has unveiled a Cessna Citation 560XLS+ painted as a winged pig for Ripley’s Believe It or Not! The aircraft was revealed at the MRO provider’s Lincoln, Nebraska, facility during NBAA-BACE week. Its 17-colour scheme combines a bright pink pig, painted white wings, cloud artwork, a gold nose ring and a gold rubber-chicken earring, with Ripley’s branding on the engines and tail.
The project began after the chief pilot of another aircraft delivered by Duncan Aviation asked whether the company could reproduce a Ripley’s design. Ripley’s subsequently submitted a different concept for quotation, which the MRO’s designers adapted to fit the Citation’s curved fuselage, wings and engine nacelles.
Duncan Aviation lead designer Hannah Mann refined the artwork and its placement, selected colours and finishes, and coordinated with the paint team. The work required the companies’ creative teams to translate flat artwork into a consistent three-dimensional livery across the aircraft.
Ripley’s president Jim Pattison Jr. described the concept as aligned with the organisation’s unusual and attention-grabbing identity. The completed aircraft highlights Duncan Aviation’s capability in highly customised business-jet paint projects; no change to the aircraft’s ownership, operation or flight schedule was disclosed.