How Can Skywriting Boost Your Business?

SURRENDER DOROTHY OR DIE. This was the message written in the sky by the wicked witch in the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz.  Ever since then airplane skywriting has fascinated young and old alike. (Actually the witch’s message was done with special effects in a 6 foot by 6 foot glass tank.) But skywriting goes back to 1922 where it was first done in England. That same year advertisers cashed in on the idea and skywriting became famous by Pepsi-Cola who used it from 1931 to 1953.

How is the smoke made? Skywriting smoke is produced by injecting paraffin oil into the exhaust of the plane. As it heats in the exhaust, the oil produces an environmentally friendly white smoke that forms the letters as it lingers in the air. Of course, the pilot must select when to inject the oil so that part of a letter is formed.

How tall are the letters? A mile tall. How long is the message? Up to fifteen miles long. How long do the letters stay visible before drifting away? They last up to twenty minutes. What determines if the skywriting will be a success? First, the skill of the pilot. He must be really good at maneuvering the plane and knowing exactly where he is in terms of the message. Second, the size of the plane engine. It must be large enough to make the letters quickly, but it also must be hot enough to vaporize sufficient paraffin oil to make the smoke. That means the paraffin must reach 1500 degrees and to do this, some recommend 450 horsepower engines that are six times hotter than small planes.

Of course for flying weather is a major factor. The sky must be nearly clear to see the white letters against the blue sky. The wind cannot exceed three to five miles per hour. The letters are therefore formed somewhere between 7000 and 17000 feet, wherever it is cool enough and windless enough. The cooler air temperature is better for making smoke, but it cannot exceed 95 degrees. When all is just right, message can normally be seen for thirty miles on either side. These perfect conditions are most predictable in September or October.

How large is the message? It is usually four to six letters and it takes one to two minutes to form each letter. A shorter message is more likely to be visible at once. Why not make it longer? When a message is longer than this, it will take too long to form so that it is seen all at once. One remedy is to hire multiple pilots. The two or three pilots coordinate their maneuvers so that, as they work together, they will produce the message visible for the minutes before it drifts away.

Remember too that the pilot is writing from the top, horizontally, that is, parallel to the earth. Therefore he must write the letters backwards so that they appear correctly to the readers below. They must also be relatively the same size and in a straight line so that the message is readable. All this takes great skill.

This method of advertising is so novel that it almost demands to be read all the time the letters are forming. So what kind of people would benefit from hiring skywriting to get their message across? Skywriting has been used to advertise soft drinks, motion pictures, websites, political candidates, products, and so forth. One company says they skywrite fifty marriage proposals each year.

What is the cost for skywriting? This depends on the company, and availability. If you must fly a skilled pilot from some distance, the cost of transportation could be greater than the message writing itself. Generally for local skywriting, prices start around $1000 and multiple messages are discounted. Call an experienced aerial advertising company and get started today.