North Central took the opportunity with its conversion to an all jet-powered fleet to also redesign its livery. Karl Brocken was once again called upon to come up with a paint scheme to reflect the "new" Convair 580 turboprop and the soon to be delivered DC-9. The main color, aqua, was chosen because it was the favorite of Charlotte Westberg, longtime secretary to President and Chairman Hal Carr. Navy blue and gold were the other trim colors used for the modified "feather" design. "Herman the Mallard Duck" still figured prominently on the tail with ship numbers remaining inside the geometric "feather".

This simplified version eliminated the gold trim used on the original design because it proved to be too costly and difficult to maintain. The "feather" located behind the cockpit windows was also removed, with the ship number relocated below the cheat lines on the nose section. The radar nose cone, which had previously been either a cream color or a combination of black and white, was painted all black.