Luftwaffe Maritime & Tropical colors

From the surface of the Baltic to the Libyan desert

During the Second World War the Luftwaffe had to deal with two environments its standard European palette could not handle: the open sea and the North African desert. Over water a dark green-black pair on the upper surfaces proved itself, blending with the surface when seen from above, complemented by a light blue underside. Over sand, by contrast, sand yellow and olive tones with a pale blue belly took over. These eight shades cover both.

The maritime part of the palette belonged to the floatplanes and flying boats that patrolled over the North Sea and the Baltic, guided submarines and rescued downed crews. The tropical part was aimed at the aircraft transferred to the Mediterranean and the North African coast, where the original European finish faded within a few weeks and ground crews commonly oversprayed it with improvised shades right on the airfield.

The set is completed by the gray shade used on the inner surfaces of cockpits and landing gear bays and a very dark gray-black tone for instrument panels and the anti-glare panel ahead of the cockpit. It is therefore not only about the exterior camouflage but about a palette usable for the whole build.

The exact colors of the period finishes are disputed to this day, because the original color chips have survived only in part and the weather shifted the shades considerably. This line-up follows the commonly accepted interpretation that most publications and kit instructions go by.

Anyone building a floatplane should count on the floats and the belly of the fuselage having been the most heavily worked surfaces of all. Salt water washed the finish off them faster than anywhere else, and bare metal showed through underneath in broad bands.