I have a Tamiya A-7E Corsair II, Navy version, and I would like to add some bombs MK82 in it. I have a set. But, which colors have I to paint it, if whole plane is white? The bombs are usually green, in other versions.
[:D]Hi the bombs will be green with a yellow band at the nose. They aren’t painted to match the aircraft.
Mal[8D]
Here’s some references which might help:
Ammunition Color Codes (FM21-16 Appendix A)
The Russian Ammunition Page
The Russian Ammunition Page: Headstamps, Color Codes, Markings
Aviation Ordnance - The Ordnance Shop
Aviation Ordnance - The Ordnance Shop: Ammunition Color Coding
Green is the standard color for bombs, execpt for those demonstration & press samples. Color bands are usually use to indicate guidance systems on the bombs. Yellow is for general purpose bombs. This is for the ordinance personnels to know what is what.
There was an excelent article in Finescale Modeler within the past couple of years about the entire family of MK.82 bombs from simple general purpose and practice variants all the way to the modern laser guided smart bomb versions of it. I’d say that article is a must read for someone with a question such as yours.
I can’t remember exacly which issue it appeared in, but you might be lucky enough to find it archived somewhere on this site.
Good luck
The article is “U.S. Mk 82 bombs,” in the Jan. 1997 issue (p. 42). Unfortunately, we don’t have it up on the site, but if you click on the Back Issues link in the navigation bar, you can find out how to get a copy of the issue (or a photocopy of the article, if the magazine is sold out).
ramaoalves,
As to painting the aircraft and the ordnance, I’m a retired Navy Chief that served in the ordnance handling specialties, including air and surface. As a Gunner’s Mate I worked in Naval ordnance handling and saw much in the way of bombs, guided missiles and much more, so maybe I can help out here with 24 years in this specialty.
First, a hint as to the painting of Navy aircraft in the era that your model represents, the mid-60’s to 80’s and none that I ever saw were all white. Perhaps this will get you off to a good start :
All Navy jets were painted with gray upper surfaces, only the underside of the fuselage, wings and the landing gear struts are painted white. The gray and white could be fresh paint as with having had the plane through maintenance where it was re-painted which took place on a regular schedule on-board aircraft carriers due to the sea salt being a corrosive to paint and other things like aluminum and electrical and mechanical components.
( I served on the USS John F. Kennedy CV- 67 in the Weapons Department )
All air-dropped bombs that are weapon types are painted Olive Drab with a thin yellow band painted just around the nose of the bomb. This is still done.
Also, here are some detailing tips for you:
On all Navy aircraft the various ordnance attachment points or pylons had safety locations where a large pin was pulled to allow the bombs to drop, These pins were kept in place until just before the plane was launched off the deck, the pins had red pennants attached to them to remind the ordnance handlers to REMOVE BEFORE FLIGHT. These could be included on your model located on the bomb racks.
Also, the wing flap areas are painted red to indicate dangerous machinery can be in motion as red is a good color for this reason. The area just in front of the jet intake was painted red as well if I remember correctly, again to indicate danger.
I hope these ideas for modeling have been helpful, getting out into the world in the Navy and the weapons we used has proven extremely helpful for models for me, I hope the same for you.
johncpo…a retired Navy Chief Petty Officer
Here’s another tip. Rarely did the bombs and fins exactly match in color. Often the bombe we had were olive drab or some shade of faded drab. THe fin assemblies usually were a different green. Sometimes a medium, somtimes a darker green, it depended on when they were made and by who.
As an old Marine Ordy from a little while back. Everything everone has said is spot on.
The fins are a different color… If running the Conicle( Slick) ones they were a different green or an aircraft gray color. Snakeeyes ( retarded) were a gunmetal color… at least that was the only color I saw them in.
The question I would have and John maybe you could help me with it is. Weren’t all naval aerail bombs on the carriers thermal coated back then. Thus you would need 2 yellow stripes at the nose. Or did that come later?
One other detail if you decided to go all out with it is. If you take a tiny drill and a piece of thin phone wire. You can drill a hole through the top and bottomof the fin run the wire though the hole and secure it on the top of the bomb where the suspension lug would be… This would indicate that the muntion had a tail fuse… If it has a nose fuse just secure the wire to the nose and run it to the front lug.
One thing to remember though… Don’t worry about how clean these things have to look. One thing I am certain of is I have never built or loaded an Aircraft that my hands stayed as clean ans when I started… Theses things get dirty and greasy… So go ahead and weather them up if you so choose…
Good luck and enjoy the build…
Hope this helped
Paul
I took this shot of an A7 on display on the USS Miway back in march.
I’m just a poor civilian, but in some recent magazines and books I’ve seen bombs on navy/marine aircraft painted grey. It looks like a ghost grey or something similar. Is this a new thing. Just curious. Thanks for your informative , first hand info guys.
Drake,
Yes, the new series of bombs (the BLU series) are coming out in a ghost grey scheme. If you are doing an aircraft that is older then 8 year old paint the bombs green, anything recent can be done in grey.
Also,
Someone asked about thermal coating on Navy bombs, after 1968 all bombs used onboard a carrier had thermal coating, that covers GP Bombs and Cluster Bombs.
One thing to consider on what I said before. My perspective is from my experiences in the Air Force, from 1970 -1987. I thought I should bring this up because I didn’t know the Navy was different and you might need the difference in the information.
Here is a pic of a typical frag that would come down from on high… I don’t know if they would have been used on an A-7 but hopefully the color referances will help…
http://highspeedlane.net/ord/002L.jpg
Looking foward to seeing some progress pics
Just a side note since we are talking about A-7’s. I understand that the Trumpter’s 1/32 A-7E comes with AGM-84 Harpoons, well the A-7 was never cleared to carry and launch the Harpoon so if anyone has that kit don’t put them on. The A-6, S-3 and P-3 were the only Navy aircraft clear for Harpoon.
Also, in the picture of the A-7 on the Midway those bombs are actully inert bombs (BDU-45’s) painted to look like live bombs but they left off the yellow stripes and they are not thermal coated. Also the fins are BSU-86 Snakeyes, they came out after the A-7’s were retired and never used operationally on the A-7.
I was in A-7’s for three years as an Ordnanceman, VA-82 Marauders USS Nimitz 84-87, if you have any A-7 question feel free to ask them, I will try to answer them to the best of my memory.
I thought the yellow stripes indicated a “live” bomb, with actual explosive charges in it. A yellow stripe on a sidewinder for instance means that the warhead is real, not inert. This would explain why the A-7 display has no stripes.
Yes, the yellow stripes indicate live weapons. For bombs, two yellow stripes mean high explosives and thermal coated. For missile it means the warhead is live, the brown stripe means the rocket motor is live. The bombs in the photo should have a blue stripe on the nose to indicate Inert bombs. Also, as a note, the new BLU series bombs will have three yellow stripes on the nose so they can be identified as BLU series from the Mk-80 series.
reddog,
Isn’t the F/A-18A/C/E/F cleared to carry the harpoon? And the SlAM(?) land attack version? Just wondering, I think I’ve seen some pics with bugs armed with Harpoons in a book or magazine.
I’m not going to get into specific weapon loads and configurations on currect operational aircraft due to OPSEC reasons. I hope you understand.
Yes, virtually every website you can find online about the F-18 lists the AGM-84 Harpoon as an operational munition. Don’t know why that needs to be such a secret.