[Gregvan]

Hi Hans,

Thanks for that - I agree. However, there were examples of somewhat translucent paint finishes, while others are suprisingly opaque. The dark blue used first on Jasta 18 aircraft under Berthold's command, and later Jasta 15 (and the other JG II units) was an example; frequently the overpainted national insignia are still visible 'through' the blue overpaint, and sometimes even serial numbers can still be discerned. I'm not sure how much this was a function of the orthorchromatic film.

I think Alex Imrie raised some very good points in German Fighter Units June 1917-1918: "The quality of paint had steadily decreased as the war continued due to the shortage of raw materials, and occasionally it was the availability of a certain colour of paint or dope in quantity that decreed the shade adopted. The colours used in the application of both unit and personal markings tended to be unstable, and some were not even waterproof. Consequently after considerable service in the vicinity of mud, oil and petrol, they seldome resembled the pristine examples they had been at the time of application. It has been recorded that sometimes whitewash was used for lightening purposes and even boot polish was applied when nothing better was to hand to produce black. Allied to the practical problems of supplying markings was the fact that attrition of D category aircraft was extremely high. Accidents caused by weather, poor aerodromes, pilot error and mechanical failures as well as actual operational losses ensured that a fairly steady turnover of aircraft took place within most units. As a result, markings of a temporary nature usually did not cause undue problems, for by the time the paintwork started to crack or flake off, or lose its original colour, the machine had probably been written off or replaced."