USAF Markings

TO 1-1-4 specified Insignia Blue but also authorized Insignia Black as a substitute. I've seen pics of a/c painted both ways so as always the answer is to work from photos of the actual a/c one is modeling if possible.

So blue was official, but was black more predominantly substituted?

Beats the hell out of me, Frank. I was an Air Force brat during those years but never paid any attention to that... :(

Thanks! That's just what I needed to know. Generally, the lettering looks black to me in the colour photographs that I've seen but Insignia Blue is such a dark blue that the difference in colour might not show up very clearly. I'll look more closely in future.

Do you know if these markings were applied in the factory or by the Air Force? Would the factories have adhered to the Insignia Blue as specified with the black being used later when aircraft were repainted or did the manufacturers use black for convenience or cheapness?

Gordon McLaughlin

Al is of course correct regarding the 1-1-4 reference.

In my four years of Air Force (TAC) service, I do not recall ever seeing one of our F-100s or F-104s in anything but Blue markings. I was a modeler and a photographer (when I could) even then, so I did pay attention to the markings.

They were of course delivered from the factory or overhaul facility in the correct markings, right down to the skin rash called extensive stenciling. After delivery, all the painting was done by our maint. troops and it was done with considerable pride and according to regulations. That all changed somewhat in the winter of 1959 when TAC headquarters dictated that all individual markings must be removed and they would all look identical. Unit pride suffered a bit after that.

Also as mentioned in a previous note on this subject, the Blue is so dark that it would appear to be Black in anything but excellent light. Another item worth noting is that a lot of the slides shot during these years was Kodachrome. I know all mine were. That film really does not have a true Black. Thus it is very difficult to tell the difference with dark Blues and Blacks.

Norm

Thanks for the further information. I've been looking at colour photographs taken in Korea during the war and it is almost always impossible to say whether the lettering is blue or black. The same is often true of the star and bars insignia themselves. There is sometimes a comparison to be made with the buzz numbers which all seem to be black but it's difficult even then.

One black and white photograph shows a Sabre on which the USAF on the wing is clearly lighter than the buzz number and the same as the star and bars so this one was blue.

As a rule of thumb, is it a safer bet to assume it's blue in your opinion?

Gordon McLaughlin

Gordon, I still have reservations about a lot of the Korean War era stuff. Many of the photos of that era sure do look a lot like Black, but by about the mid 1950's, the color was clearly Blue.

Norm

One possible way to tell the difference between blue and black lettering in photos is to try to locate a "star and bar" insignia and a black anti-glare panel on the same aircraft with the lettering. Try to determine if the lettering shade looks more like the blue in the insignia or the black on the anti-glare panel. This method has been successful for me on occasion. Of course, if the anti-glare panel is "olive drab" then you need to find some other black color reference somewhere else on the airplane.

Martin

At the factory, then touched up as needed in the field.

All the above and more, probably... ;-p

As I remember it with my 68 year old memory, which is getting more fallible every year, they were indeed black. Never saw blue ones.

Gord> Does anyone know with certainty what colour the USAF lettering on natural

Lighter could also mean dark grey. Black paints chalk to a dark grey pretty soon when planes are left out in sun and outdoor environment. Such dark greys could be hard to differentiate from dark blue in a photo.