Great Aircraft exterior painting and refurbishment must not only look great, but must stand the test of time. At Aerosmith Aviation, we use only top quality, proven products and spare no steps to ensure your aircraft receives the best quality paint job – guaranteed.
Aerosmith’s aircraft painting process incorporates our 334-point checklist. The first step is to do a thorough inspection of the aircraft. Once all cosmetic and mechanical problems have been noted and provided to the customer for review the sensitive parts of the aircraft including flight controls are removed or protected with aluminum and plastic sheeting, then a non-acidic, environmentally friendly chemical stripper is applied.
After the aircraft is stripped of all exterior paint, cosmetic flaws are removed and corrosion control begins. Next, a three-step process begins with another hand washing. This time an alkaline soap is used to ensure a clean start, then a chemical etch is applied to all aluminum surfaces. Lastly, the aluminum surfaces are treated with alodine. Alodine reacts with the metal of your airplane, creating a layer of aluminum oxide. This conversion to aluminum oxide is critical in assuring corrosion resistance and paint adhesion in the years to come.
A mil. spec epoxy primer is then applied and, depending on the aircraft, an epoxy surfacer is applied to assure a perfectly smooth surface on which the base coat of paint is applied. To ensure that your paint finish has a "wet look" and to insure proper adhesion, 3-5 mils of a polyurethane basecoat are applied.
Next, our design team lays out your personal paint scheme on your aircraft by hand. Prior to applying colors, a digital photo of the paint scheme and design is e-mailed to you for final approval. This is one of many steps we take to ensure that you get the exact look you want.
