Painted U.S. Air Force Planes Are Making A Comeback

(Photo: Courtesy FighterSweep.com)

Air Force Times: Throughout the Air Force, painted planes make a quiet comeback

It took 31 days to transform this otherwise dull gray F-15 Eagle into a colorful abstract worthy of its noble avian namesake. The powerful warplane is adorned with wisp-like feathers that stretch across its 43-foot wingspan and onto its fuselage. Its nest, Kingsley Field in Klamath Falls, Oregon, is home to the the 173rd Fighter Wing and the Air Force's only F-15C training schoolhouse. The ramp holds 32 Eagles in all.

But this bird — tail number AF79-041 — stands out among its siblings.

The colorful nose art — well, body art — is so loud that the airmen who created it required special permission. Painted to celebrate the Oregon Air National Guard's 75th anniversary, the plane is turning heads everywhere it flies. It's a throwback to a era when American combat aircraft weren't just deadly; they had swagger. Across the Air Force today, airmen are once again decorating all kinds of aircraft. Fighters and bombers, sure, but also refueling tankers, cargo transports and even a few drones. In the process, they're reviving a tradition that may not be as racy as it was during World War II but one that resonates just as strongly today.

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WNU Editor: The U.S. Air Force is not the only Air Force painting their planes. For more photos of planes that have been painted, go to FlightSweep.com.