Weathering on Aircraft

Small token to those who insist that aircraft do not get dirty as any other thing on earth!

OK different from mud or rust but very particular weathering and scratches, by the way these are sortie jets used by NATO over Libya, surely they do not have time to clean up ...

Notice the metal area and discoloured area that is constantly touched and scratched call signs ...



Some dirty birds ... sooth, oil, dust ...





I think it's proof enough that when time is against you no one bothers to clean up as long as it flies!

You are so right Ivan, those are some interesting photos of modern subjects and the weathering looks really great. Those planes have been through some s**t it seems from the dirt they have on them. Well used and well worn, some of the weathering is not particular only to planes but would also be found on vehicles. So we can go there with our aircraft.

Ivan, of all aircraft you have picked one that is notoriously dirty most of its time, you should see the US.Navy counterpart.

p.s. - acc to the leading edge decals I am using on the starfighter, canadians had the practice of washing their starfighers with rags soaked in paint thinner, hence the weathered look on their camouflaged starfighters. Hope they are not treating their hornet the same way

p.s II. - that is not dirt as such, it is mostly paint weathering/fading,paint patchup, hydraulic leaks, oil stains etc.. not mud and so. You can have mud on WWII and helicopters, but modern aircraft operate mainly from paved runways. A big external difference between modern aircraft and helicopter can be seen by simply examining the skin, aircraft have flush riveting(to reduce drag) and helicopters have 'bulged' rivet heads, were drag in their case is not so much important but these also will serve for more dirt to collect around them! A reason behind why modern wheels are painted white is that oil leaks could be more easily spotted. Helicopters operate in a different enviroment and get more weathered and grimy true, in fact these are the only flying things that might get closer and realistically weathered closer to AFVs.

p.s III - see how clean and tidy the ejection seat looks along with the seat belts, helmet, flying gear, HUD, etc..

I believe that the Navy ones would be much worst ...

Agreed on all fronts ... the idea was to indicate that all military things get weathered, infact from images I found the Typhoons due that are 'newer' aircraft are in a much better condition then these 'older' counterparts ... for sure looks like the Canadians are not having a spick n span practice.

Well notice the different kind of weathering which is not always restricted to just scratches or mud which many believe is the norm ... paint discolouring and patch ups are the norm on aircraft, as surely is oil leaks and especially on russian material sooth ... what sure every kind of equipment has it's different kind of weathering. Well noticed the difference with the cockpit area ... but then again these aircrafts are in a European 'cleaner' spring period.

Ivan

marco could help re wwii aircraft weathering he once sent me some pictures of russian planes and the state they where in was incredible. i also have some photos of P47 ground attack variant beleive me they are weathered.
now when we say weathering that does not only mean mud, dust and oil only but also include the wear and tear and stress damage.

Joseph

I think for aircraft it is much easier to work with oils and enemels to create these effects, still if working with pigments use the MIG fixer and you have no problem that it gets rubbed off ... I invited here Jouqim, he is one of the pillars and master of the Spanish School and recently he is taking the challenge to built aircraft besides dios and AFVs and surely he can give us essential hints ...

Ivan

Why did they clean the f104s with thinner?? :S :S

do you think the enviroment.. in canadas case freezing temperatures, had an impact??

i think they have all those streaks because they just dont clean them after maintenance. hence all that remains gets spread during flying

AdriaN wrote:Why did they clean the f104s with thinner?? :S :S

do you think the enviroment.. in canadas case freezing temperatures, had an impact??

i think they have all those streaks because they just dont clean them after maintenance. hence all that remains gets spread during flying

If Canadians are so untidy during maintenance they need a cleaning company to get their aircraft in shape ....
Though I am not an aircraft nut my view comes to a point that probably these birds are old or have seen some good flying hours. It really gives a difference when you compare to fresher birds like the Typhoons, besides RAF Tornados are also in a similar dirty shape, again old birds ... would like to see ore shots now that the bombardment has gone into some weeks of action and are not at their home grounds ...

Joe, i love the way you finish your aircraft, they are neat and pristine and that is your style. Be careful if you are going to start weathering,the final look will be very different. You amaze everyone with your neatness and there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. My point is ..... PLEASE don't feel like you are being pushed into weathering if you are satisfied with the way you finish your models, they are absolutely beautiful and i wish i could produce such neat work.

RAF Tornados ... after some days in action ...

bcauchi wrote:Joe, i love the way you finish your aircraft, they are neat and pristine and that is your style. Be careful if you are going to start weathering,the final look will be very different. You amaze everyone with your neatness and there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. My point is ..... PLEASE don't feel like you are being pushed into weathering if you are satisfied with the way you finish your models, they are absolutely beautiful and i wish i could produce such neat work.

Thanks Brian, but a little more weathering won't do much harm. I am not going for heavy weathering, just a step up were needed.

iCocker wrote:RAF Tornados ... after some days in action ...

Sorry Ivan, they are tornado Ok , but they are Italian Air Force

You are the expert I just followed the caption from were I 'burrowed' them ... can't see insignia to verify so I leave these details to the experts!

iCocker wrote:You are the expert I just followed the caption from were I 'burrowed' them ... can't see insignia to verify so I leave these details to the experts!

I no the 'expert' but no problem, you are right there is no insignia, so that is a first hint as RAF tornado have their roundel under the cockpit. The numbering is typical italian coding. The 50 on the one in the foreground stands for 50 stormo. The aircraft is a Tornado ECR (only Italy and germany operate this version) and belongs to 155grupo 'pantere nere'

The other in the background is a Tornado IDS from 6 stormo. As for the middle one who knows

Strange they are armed, did not the Italian were just doing police duties over Libya, or maybe just to add security measures on their side ... so here is last update Rebel Floggers [I guess]