Prospective brides and grooms might wish to consider an alternative colour scheme for the big day this summer: orange. On Sunday, budget airline easyJet announced its intention to hold mid-air marriage ceremonies in the near future, as the picture above gamely imagines.

Perhaps it's a limelight thing. No-frills rival Ryanair has been enjoying rather a lot of the stuff recently - news that the airline is considering implementing a "fat tax" on overweight passengers followed shortly after proposals to charge passengers for using the toilet caused a predictable furore. Understandably, easyJet might feel a little left out. They want to be your friend. They even want to be your wedding venue.

"We're excited about these plans" said Paul Simmons, easyJet's UK regional general manager, "if there is the opportunity, our pilots could be marrying couples in the air. Future brides and grooms can say 'I will' on the flight from London Gatwick to Olbia, on Sardinia, for example. After their marriage at a height of 30,000 feet they then can go directly on their honeymoon."

The announcement reveals that easyJet "has enquired with the authorities whether pilots could be authorised to officiate weddings in the air", but the company might encounter a number of hurdles before it starts joining couples in matrimony above the clouds.

Heather Dsenisi, Deputy Registrar at the Southampton Registry Office, is sceptical. "Officially, British marriages have to be conducted in a licensed building, which has to be a permanent structure that doesn't move, and the ceremony has to be officiated by a minister of religion or by a registrar employed by a local council. We have plenty of requests to officiate on cruise ships at Southampton harbour, but the best we can offer is a blessing."

Regardless of the legal difficulties, conducting a wedding requires concentration and a significant amount of paperwork. Some passengers might prefer the pilot to focus on flying the plane.