The Reason Why Military Aircraft And Ships Are Painted Gray

Today's military forces have some of the most sophisticated hardware and crafts the world has seen. From military aircraft with four engines, to mind-boggling high-tech weapons that border on science fiction, the list of weapons and vehicles is seemingly endless. But with all its variety, the military has a few constant features. Among these is the practice of painting its aircraft and ships grey.

The military has been painting its ships and aircraft grey for decades to help them blend with their environments, camouflaging them against enemy forces. The monotone color achieved this by allowing the military aircraft and vessels to blend in with several lighting conditions, making it the perfect color for obscuring vehicles. However, while this reason might be apparent to many, the history behind its use, which properties go into the paint today, and the various camouflage schemes the military used might not be. The history of military aircraft and ship camouflage shows how it has evolved with today's technology.

Most military forces worldwide use a shade of grey in their equipment, whether uniforms or vehicles. The use of the color dates back to the turn of the 19th century, when countries like Austria determined that grey was a better camouflage color for their troops than the often-used green.

The color was also cheaper to source, which, combined with its camouflage qualities, made it popular with troops such as the Confederate Forces in the 1860s, and the German Army between 1907 and 1945. By World War I, France and Germany had adopted grey as one of the primary colors of their aircraft. By World War II, Britain was opting for open grey and sea grey as replacements for its two-tone schemes, which had become dangerously visible at higher altitudes. By 1943, high-level aircraft like Spitfires and Welkins used shades of grey as their primary color scheme.

As the century progressed, more aircraft adopted grey schemes. These included the F-14, counted among some of the best-looking fighter jets in military history, the MiG-17, the F-16, and the RAF Tornado ADV. Most modern military aircraft use shades of grey radar-absorbent paint with tiny iron spheres coated with either carbonyl iron or ferrite. Suppose the plane happens to be hit by electromagnetic radiation — which is common in most radar systems — the iron spheres absorb the radiation, releasing heat that dampens the waves, stopping most of them from reflecting back to the radar detectors.

Like with aircraft, naval ships have featured the color grey for decades. The U.S. Navy was already considering camouflaging its vessels against enemy forces as early as 1899, with artist Robert DeForest Brush being a key player in the project. However, due to a scarcity of test facilities, the suggestions made by Brush didn't see any immediate implementation until 1914.

The U.S. declared war in April 1917. With this declaration came a convergence of other well-known artists, each focused on providing input on the best naval camouflage. A research center in Rochester, New York, was established, breathing life to camouflage systems like the Herzog scheme — which used broad color bands in circular forms and arcs — and the Toch system, which focused on massive diagonal streaks of contrasting colors.

Later systems, like the British-inspired dazzle system — which used irregular patterns meant to break up vertical and horizontal lines — were adopted by the U.S. Navy. One of the most prominent colors used in this system was blue-grey, which was sometimes mixed with shades of grey-white, grey-pink, and grey-green to produce more niche colors.

The primary role of the dazzle paint scheme was to disrupt the ship's outline. Although the scheme made determining a ship's size, range, and speed difficult, advancements in rangefinder and radar technology made them impractical, necessitating a different approach. 

Grey had already proven to have low visibility, which made it the perfect color to switch to. It blended well with the horizon and most ocean and sea weather conditions. Ships received more than one shade of the color, with the Navy using darker tones near the waterline and lighter tones in the masts. With the war's conclusion, the Navy adopted a lighter shade of grey, similar to what exists today: haze grey.