I have always been fascinated by flight. The thrill of liftoff. The intricacy of a cockpit. Even the name ‘airport’ sounds so wonderfully futuristic, doesn’t it? My parents would take me to EWR when I was a kid to watch planes take off. I’d point at helicopters before I could even form sentences and scream “opeter! opeter!”. With today being National Aviation Day, I wanted to look at how our products contribute to this important and fascinating industry.

You may be wondering at this point why airplanes are painted in the first place. After all, large metal planes could be quite attractive even without a paint job. But airplanes are painted when they’re brand new because the paint protects against salts, oxidation, and spills of jet fuel that can do the metal harm.

Thin layers are a must when painting a plane because not only do they use less paint but this also makes the plane lighter in the end as all paint layers add weight to an airplane. Most paint is chrome-free and easy to wash. 

There are two main types of paint used on airplanes, enamel and epoxy. Here are the main differences:

Epoxy is a polyurethane paint that adheres well to airplane surfaces. It doesn’t dry as hard as enamel, so it doesn’t chip or become brittle over time. Epoxy has a high resistance to chemicals and doesn’t fade, oxidize, or break down easily.

Enamel offers two main advantages over epoxy: it is a lower-cost option and it is not as dangerous as epoxy because it doesn’t give off certain gases when being sprayed. The two paints can also be used together. For instance, often an enamel paint is used for the plane’s design and color. Then the epoxy, or polyurethane, is applied for extra strength and shine. It is the perfect combination for both hardiness and beauty.

Fast Facts

We are proud to be a supplier of the best equipment to help keep our planes flying!