Early-WW2 USAAF Camouflage

USAAF Camouflage Reference Contents:

Early-WW2 USAAF Camouflage (1941-1943)

When World War II broke out, the U.S. Army Air Forces introduced camouflage consisting of Dark Olive Drab No. 41, a deep olive hue, over Neutral Gray No. 43. Sometimes an additional color, Medium Green No. 42, was also applied.  It was used for additional camouflage consisting of irregular spots on the edges of wings and tail fins and stabilizers.

The exact hue of Dark Olive Drab No. 41 during WWII has been a longstanding debate, as the U.S. Army Air Force and U.S. Army versions frequently varied. Notably, when the ANA system was established in 1943, changes occurred yet again to the USAAF variant. Though there is no definitive answer, it is generally assumed that freshly painted Dark Olive Drab No. 41 had a dull olive green tint which gradually faded into either a darker shade of green or more usually towards tan over time. Such disparities in fading were caused by the diverse pigments utilized by paint suppliers to match the authorized color chip. Additionally, it faded differently on material surfaces compared to metal – hence why Dark Olive Drab No. 41 painted aircraft typically features lighter fabric flaps, rudders, ailerons, and other moveable surfaces (or sometimes even opposite). Probably no other military camouflage shade has been seen with more diversity of hues in photographic evidence, and since all drabs tend to appear close between being green or brownish-green, small adjustments in lighting and saturation also had an effect on its visible hue.

Neutral Grey No. 43 is far less contentious, as the title suggests it's nearly a perfect neutral gray (its ancestor, Neutral Gray No. 32 according to 1939 specification had Munsell value of 5N which in 1929 notation illustrated as perfect neutral). Depending on the photograph taken, this shade can appear warmer or cooler and also tends to look darker than its real tone due to the dirt accumulation on the lower surfaces during aircraft operation.

Medium Green No. 42 replaced Sea Green No. 28 and had a much darker green hue with shades of blue. It was intended to blur the edges of the aircraft, but the effect turned out to be the opposite.  This paint was much less susceptible to fading than Dark Olive Drab No. 41 and the edges of the aircraft became even more noticeable, especially in black-and-white photographs.

On June 15, 1943, the U.S. Army Air Forces issued Technical Order T.O. 07-1-1 instructing aircraft to adapt specific temporary finishes that varied from the regular colors. This was especially necessary for aircraft operating in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, where the standard blotches of Medium Green No 42 were to be replaced by Dark Olive Drab No. 41 on the upper surfaces painted with Sand No. 49. For night-operated aircraft, Neutral Gray No. 43 was also to be replaced by Black No. 44 for lower surfaces to reduce visibility at dark. Due to the lack of new paints and the old colors remaining in stock, this regulation also allowed the use of predecessor analogs such as Sea Green No. 28 for Medium Green No. 42, Sand No. 26 for Sand No. 49, as well as Black No. 33 for Black No. 44 instead of the current shades stated in Specification 14057-C. After the introduction of the new specification, only a limited number of combat aircraft carried the new camouflage, either new factory-painted ones, some combat units in the mainland, and some U.S. Army bombers based in the United Kingdom.

On September 28, 1943, the ANA system was introduced to replace Bulletin No. 41 paints with new equivalents. It's common knowledge that the majority of brand-new USAAF planes kept being coated in Dark Olive Drab No. 41 and Neutral Gray No. 43 while inventory lasted; those supplies were still available even after a month since when aircrafts had been ordered not to be painted at all. Complicating the issue is that, prior to introducing the ANA system, authorities briefly reverted back to Olive Drab No. 319 - a color used by the US Army Corps of Engineers. This hue differs from both Dark Olive Drab No. 41 and ANA 613 as it consists of a paler shade of brown. Despite being an U.S. Army paint color, reports suggest it was also used on several aircraft in 1943.

Early War USAAF Camouflage Schemes

Olive Drab vs Olive Green vs Green Drab

In the 1920s and 1930s the Air Corps and Navy used independent color standards. But by 1939 agreement had already been reached on a single Army and Navy standard for all peacetime colors. However, the stock of colors continued to be used until they were exhausted. But by August 1942 all camouflage colors had been standardised and unified.

Unlike others, most USAAF aircraft did not use multi-color camouflage on the top sides. This was usually done using Olive Drab on the upper surfaces and Neutral Gray on the underside.

QMS and ANA paint chips with different colors suggesting Olive Drab shade are given below. FS analogues are also provided.

Neutral Gray (Underside Gray)

Dana Bell has provided a fairly comprehensive reference on this color.

Early-WW2 USAAF Color Guide

• Dark Olive Drab No. 41: Modelers are often faced with the issue that most paint brands only offer one version of WWII USAAF color, disregarding the shifts produced by adapting to ANA. As a result, a paint labelled as simply "US Olive Drab" doesn't provide much guidance for model makers. Another issue is whether or not the aircraft was recently painted in Dark Olive Drab No. 41 due to it having recently arrived at an airfield or if it has exposed to sun and weather conditions over time.
• Neutral Gray No. 43: Neutral Gray No. 43 is more populare among model paint makers, and its closest match is FS 36173 (with some similarities to FS 36270). However, there isn't an ANA counterpart since the color that replaced it - ANA 603 - has a much darker hue with bits of blue.
• Medium Green No. 42: As the Medium Green No. 42 color was never a predominant fuselage color, most paint suppliers have steered clear of it. It was later replaced by ANA 612 and is sometimes compared to FS 34092 which is available in most paint ranges. However, there are enough disparities between them that they cannot be regarded as one in the same (thus being deemed an approximation instead of a perfect match).

Photos of USAAF Aircraft in Early-WW2 Camouflage

References to Early-WW2 USAAF Camouflage:

• Archer, Robert D. and Archer, Victor G., USAAF Aircraft Markings and Camouflage 1941-1947, Schiffer Publishing (1997)
• Bell, Dana, Air Force Colors Volume 1 1926-1942, Squadron/Signal Publications (1995)
• Bell, Dana, Air Force Colors Volume 2 ETO & MTO 1942-1945, Squadron/Signal Publications (1980)
• Elliot, John M., The Official Monogram US Navy & Marine Corps Aircraft Color Guide Vol 2 1940-1949, Monogram Aviation Publications (1989)
• David Rapasi, Shades of O.D. & Neutral Gray, ARC
• Rodrigo Aguilera, The World Wars.net

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