might be of interest re bare metal skins v's drab

[Stonehouse]

https://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/the-u-s-army-air-forces-strips-its-planes-of-paint/

[Reggie_Mental]

Some dubious research there.

 

A study found that painted B17s were actually faster. The paint smoothed out the riveted overlapping surfaces in construction. The aircraft was heavier, which affected range and altitude, but not speed. Also an unpainted aircraft could carry another 300lbs of ammunition, or indeed anything else it wanted to like, nylons, Hershey bars, chewing gum, Luckies etc;

 

A smooth and polished surface will improve speed, whether it be bare metal or painted, much more than the weight reduction of omitting paint.

 

There is a Greg's Airplanes YT vid that goes into some depth about this.

Edited December 26, 2022 by Reggie_Mental