AirBorneo unveils new logo, faces calls for transparency over design contest

Sarawak-owned airline AirBorneo has revealed its official logo, "Wings of unity", in a ceremony at the Satria Pertiwi Complex, ahead of its operational debut in January 2026. The launch was officiated by Sarawak Premier, Abang Johari Tun Openg.

The airline’s new brand identity, anchored by the slogan ‘Borneo for you’, aims to reflect AirBorneo’s vision of connecting Sarawak with the world through purposeful travel.

AirBorneo said in a release, the "Wings of unity" logo draws inspiration from Sarawak’s natural environment and cultural heartbeat. Evoking the wind and flowing like a river, it symbolises freedom, connectivity, and innovation, while its roots honour the state’s heritage.

The launch of AirBorneo was first announced in February, after the Sarawak government entered into a sale and purchase agreement with the Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) to formalise the acquisition of MASwings. It was rebranded shortly after the takeover was formalised.

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Describing the logo as more than a design, Sarawak Secretary and AirBorneo Holdings chairman Amar Mohamad Abu Bakar Marzuki said, "it is in substance a promise to connect Borneo to the world, and the world." He noted that the brand reflects the Premier’s vision for enhanced regional connectivity, economic growth, and cultural pride.

The branding also positions AirBorneo as a bridge between communities and businesses across continents, signalling its ambition to foster cultural pride and economic growth. Abang Johari Tun Openg highlighted the airline as a symbol of confidence in Sarawak’s global standing and emphasised its role in advancing the Post COVID-19 Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030, particularly in ASEAN air connectivity, infrastructure, SME support, and job creation.

Meanwhile, AirBorneo also said in a statement as quoted by Bernama, that the airline's brand identity incorporates elements of Sarawak's colours and motifs, symbolising the region's unity and diversity.

However, the unveiling of the design on 21 August (Thursday) has reportedly sparked criticism online, amid allegations that the new airline logo was derived from stock images. In a Facebook post, Taufiq Salleh claimed that the logo closely resembled a vector on Shutterstock created by the user “aslai.” He also noted similarities between the logo and Empyrean, a European suitcase brand established this year.

The Dayak Daily also reported that the Sarawak Democratic Action Party Socialist Youth (DAPSY) has called on the Sarawak government to clarify the stock image allegations. Its secretary, George Lam, urged the state authorities to make public the results of the official logo and aircraft livery design competition, which was launched in early March.

Lam said that participants who had spent time designing their concepts for the competition had expressed frustration online, claiming that the results were never released. Quoted by Dayak Daily, he added that there were serious concerns over whether the logo was genuinely created by a professional, questioning its originality and representativeness. Lam also called for the logo to be redesigned with Borneo-themed elements to better reflect the region and create a more representative brand identity.

According to social monitoring by CARMA, conversations about AirBorneo are currently 27.8% positive and 11.2% negative. Prior to the logo change, sentiments were 7.4% positive and 0.4% negative.

Based on the monitoring company's findings, some netizens are complimenting the design of the logo while others engaging in conversations with artists who took part in the logo design contest, while the artists who took part in the contest expressed their frustration and felt that their work was undervalued.

Additionally, some users questioned the value placed on the design process, and some also highlighted the disparity between the quality of submissions and the chosen design.

Based on CARMA's word cloud associated with Air Borneo, words such as design, logo, contest and livery made appearances.

The logo and livery design competition organised by AirBorneo invited creatives to submit entries for the new state-owned airline in March, with the submission deadline set for 17 March 2025. According to a post on UKAS’ Facebook page, the competition was split into two categories, and participants were encouraged to incorporate elements reflecting Sarawak’s culture, heritage, and biodiversity in their designs. Submissions were to be sent via email to admin@airborneo.com.

A+M has reached out to the Sarawak ministry of transportation for comment.

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