US Navy & USMC colors from 70’s to present

Carrier decks without a single bright color

The turn of the 1970s meant the end of the era of striking paint schemes for American naval aviation. White undersides and rich blue-gray upper surfaces gave way to a tactical scheme made up exclusively of low-contrast grays, because studies showed that what matters is breaking up the outline of the aircraft at a distance, not blending with the background. That is exactly the change these eight shades cover.

In the set you will find both the older pair for the white-belly scheme and the whole ladder of grays of the later tactical finish, from the lightest to the dark. It is complemented by the very dark gray used on aircraft supporting ground forces and on gunships. The line-up therefore suffices for naval fighters and attack aircraft, for carrier helicopters and for Marine Corps equipment.

In practice this kind of camouflage has one catch: the individual shades differ from one another by only a few tones, so when spraying them the usual support of strong contrast disappears. It pays to keep to the order from the lightest to the darkest, to let each coat flash off properly and to suggest the transitions rather than cover them. The panel lines are then picked out carefully, because real aircraft on a deck look faded rather than dirty.

The paints are adapted to an airbrush, have a finely milled pigment and keep a matte surface once dry, on which a gloss intermediate coat sits well before the decals.

Anyone wanting to get the most out of the palette will add a light emphasis on the maintenance stencils and the rescue markings. On an almost single-color aircraft they carry the main visual information and decide the impression the model makes up close.