Editing Midwest Airlines (section)

====Aircraft livery====
[[File:McDonnell Douglas MD-88, Midwest Express Airlines AN0088255.jpg|thumb|right|One of the airline's MD-88s photographed in Midwest Express' first livery in 1991]]
[[File:McDonnell Douglas DC-9-14, Midwest Express Airlines JP27907.jpg|thumb|A [[DC-9|DC-9-14]] in Midwest Express' second livery in 2002]]

Midwest Express' original livery consisted of dark blue on the upper half, and white on the lower half. The two were separated by blue and red [[cheatline]]s with white in between, which ran up the [[trailing edge]] of the tail. The engines were white, and on the tail was a bold "M" and a script "E", representing the airline name, and the way the titles were printed on the fuselage. This scheme could still be found on one [[Beech 1900D]] of [[Midwest Connect]], without the "M E" on the tail, as late as 2005.<ref>[http://www.airliners.net/open.file/0213063/L/ Midwest Express Airlines DC-9-30 in startup livery] on Airliners.net</ref>

In 1989, the airline started to add the [[McDonnell Douglas MD-80]] to the fleet, initially in the same livery. In the mid-1990s, the livery was substantially revised. The top half of the aircraft remained blue (albeit slightly brighter), but the bottom half was repainted light grey, along with the engines, and they were now separated by gold, white, and red cheatline. The tail logo also underwent minor changes, adding a circle around the lettering and the same cheatline from the fuselage connecting the circle to the leading edge of the tail. Despite the unchanged lettering on the tail, the titles on the fuselage were changed to all bold letters, rather than the script "Express" titles.<ref>[http://www.airliners.net/open.file/0360640/L/ Midwest Express Airlines DC-9-10 in intermediate colors] on Airliners.net</ref>

In 2003, Midwest Express Airlines began to create a new identity, as the first Boeing 717s were being delivered, and the DC-9 aircraft were being retired. The company started with removing the "Express" from its name (and thus, off the fuselage), and it designed a new logo that would help point it out as a representative of [[Milwaukee]]. The result was a logo that looked much like a wing, with a small 'M' inside of it. However, if the logo is turned on its side, it bears a resemblance to the [[Milwaukee Art Museum]], designed by [[Santiago Calatrava]], which was being constructed at the same time. The Art Museum had risen as an icon of Milwaukee, and so the new Midwest Airlines felt this would be a good representation. Along with this new identity came a new livery. The bottom of the aircraft remained grey, while the top was repainted in a deeper blue, with essentially the same gold, white, and red cheatlines separating the two. On the lower half, there was also a blue swoop, starting at the front (looking much like another stripe), getting larger as it went back until it covered the entire rear fuselage. The engines on these planes were painted in the same blue color, with four gold rings on the port engine, and three on the starboard. This was meant to represent the ranking of Captain and First Officer, along with where they sit. Only three MD-80 aircraft, registered N813ME, N822ME, and N823ME ever wore the full new livery; all other MD-80s wore a hybrid livery until retirement, combining the second Midwest Express livery with the current logo and titling of Midwest Airlines.<ref>[http://www.airliners.net/open.file/0399005/L/ Midwest Airlines 717 in "Calatrava" livery] on Airliners.net</ref> In the transitional period, some MD-80s also received the new titles before the new tail logo, resulting in another variation on the livery.<ref>[http://www.airliners.net/photo/Midwest-Airlines/McDonnell-Douglas-MD-82/0480709/L/ Midwest MD-81 during the transition between names] on Airliners.net</ref>