Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!att!cbnews!military
From: pyuxf!jem3@bellcore.bellcore.com (John E McKillop)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Modern USN Aircraft Colors: Why White & Red?
Message-ID: <1990Jul23.201257.4642@cbnews.att.com>
Date: 23 Jul 90 20:12:57 GMT
References: <1990Jul5.020644.14675@cbnews.att.com> <1990Jul8.053603.8430@cbnews.att.com>
Sender: military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker)
Organization: Bell Communications Research, NJ
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Approved: military@att.att.com



From: pyuxf!jem3@bellcore.bellcore.com (John E McKillop)

In article <1990Jul8.053603.8430@cbnews.att.com> nam2254%dsacg2.dsac.dla.mil@dsac.dla.mil (Tom Ohmer) writes:
>
>
>From: nam2254%dsacg2.dsac.dla.mil@dsac.dla.mil (Tom Ohmer)
>
>>From article <1990Jul5.020644.14675@cbnews.att.com>, by jeffs@a.gp.cs.cmu.edu (Jeffrey Schlimmer):
>> [questions about Navy aircraft paint scheme deleted]
>
>For that matter, I remember (as a very young boy) military aircraft having
>a portion of the tail (and maybe the wingtips) painted a very bright
>orange.  Anyone know why?
>
>> I'll be happy to post a summary of responses next week.
>
>Me, too.

You don't give your age but if you were a young boy in the
late 50's or early 60's I can give you one reason. There was a
great deal of fear of mid air collision in those days so all
non-combat military aircraft were painted International Orange
on the nose, wing tips and tail for greater visibility. I was
in an AF Reserve unit at the time with Dollar Nineteens, aka
Fairchild C-119, and all our aircraft were painted. I often
wondered what would have happened if we were called up for a
war. The orange made a beautiful target.

Also, USAF aircraft operating in the Artic in the 40's and
50's had their wingtips and tail surfaces painted bright red.
This was so they could be sighted against the snow if the
aircraft went in. I was in Iceland in 56-57 and the 54th Air
Rescue Squadron had all of their SC-54Ds painted in this
manner.