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odd question- dark paint visibility study


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Hi all,

 

 A friend is trying to decide on colours for his fleet of cessna 150's and I commented that studies show that dark colours, (black, blue) are more visible against the bright sky. He asked if I could find the studies...and I can't.

 

 so question,

 

 any one have a link to one of the studies that prove darker colours are more visible?

 

he painted a few yellow a few years ago, and we are thinking black to stand out against the sky, with some yellow along the top to help be seen from above against the ground.

 

 Thanks,

 Sean

 

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From a manufacturer apparently in Canada; https://www.vikingair.com/twin-otter-information/twin-otter-answers/what’s-safest-colour-airplane

Quote

Painting a plane with colours that contrast the sky, water and land is the best way to make it more visible. Using brighter colours does not necessarily create more contrast, as colours like silver or orange may not be visible in certain weather conditions. Additionally, black paint has been known to cause composite materials to overheat past their safe temperature limits in hotter conditions.

Bold added for emphasis.

 

A German sailplane manufacturer seems to second that motion, https://www.dg-flugzeugbau.de/en/library/safety-paint-sailplanes

Quote

Safety Paint on our Sailplanes

For improved visibility it is recommended that the sailplane is painted as noticeable as possible.
Unfortunately dark colors have the undesirable characteristic that they heat up enormously in the hot summer months. The greatly increased temperature decreases the strength of the material.

 

Edited by southwestforests
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10 hours ago, martin_sam_2000 said:

Hi all,

 

 A friend is trying to decide on colours for his fleet of cessna 150's and I commented that studies show that dark colours, (black, blue) are more visible against the bright sky. He asked if I could find the studies...and I can't.  so question,  any one have a link to one of the studies that prove darker colours are more visible? he painted a few yellow a few years ago, and we are thinking black to stand out against the sky, with some yellow along the top to help be seen from above against the ground.

You can look at military trainers, and how their colors have evolved over the last two decades. Most air forces went to dark colors (often black) to increase the visibilty of their trainers. Military aircraft colors are (should) not be dictated by cosmetic requirements, compared to civil aircraft, and should therefore be a reasonably objective indicator for (in this case) best visibility.

 

Rob

 

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Perhaps the visibility issue for aircraft viewing from the air is different than when viewing from the ground, and this is totally an unscientific statement here so take it for it's worth (about 1.5 cents)  But to me personally when viewing aircraft flying high over head, bright colors seem to be easier to find. BUT when watching an airshow for instance with the Blues or the Thunderbirds. I find it much easier to spot the Blue Angels coming in from distance than the Thunderbirds. So in a non-sciencey question, perhaps dark tops and sides and bright undersides? Interesting subject.

 

Bill

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Essentially you want to take the truths of camouflage and invert them to maximize visibility. A dark shape will stand out better against a light sky, and a light shape will stand out better against a dark background. The Thunderbirds are harder to pick out because their light paint blends in better against the light sky, PLUS it lessens the shadows that form underneath. This plays into something called Countershading, which has been used in military camouflage for at least 100 years.

 

Because of dark grounds, light grounds, dark skies, and light skies, there is no "one best" high visibility scheme.

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13 hours ago, niart17 said:

Perhaps the visibility issue for aircraft viewing from the air is different than when viewing from the ground, and this is totally an unscientific statement here so take it for it's worth (about 1.5 cents)  But to me personally when viewing aircraft flying high over head, bright colors seem to be easier to find. BUT when watching an airshow for instance with the Blues or the Thunderbirds. I find it much easier to spot the Blue Angels coming in from distance than the Thunderbirds. So in a non-sciencey question, perhaps dark tops and sides and bright undersides? Interesting subject.

 

Bill

 

 

Yeah, as an aviation photographer, I can say that tracking and focusing on something like an F4U (or the Blue Angels) is much, much easier than a tactically painted F-16 or F-18 demo. Thunderbirds white is kind of an odd case, as it can blend with the clouds, or can be easily visible, but reflecting so much light that no details are easily detected.

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1 hour ago, Ollie T-Y said:

Radio Control gliders typically use thick stripes of black and a fluorescent colour like orange or pink, to increase visibility at range,

 

This. You can create the contrast with paint on the airplane vs contrasting the airplane against the sky/ground/water. 

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