Camouflage & Markings

By 1943, Luftwaffe (German Air Force) fighter aircraft wore a mid-war camouflage scheme of RLM 74 (a dark gray with a greenish tint) and RLM 75 (a medium gray) on all upper surfaces and RLM 76 (a light lue-gray) on lower surfaces. RLM stands for RiechsLuftMinisterium, or German Air Ministry, the organization responsible for aircraft procurement for the Luftwaffe. Upper surface camouflage was applied in a soft-edged meandering pattern, with sides of the fuselage and tail painted in lower surface colors with a mottling of the upper surface colors applied over top of this. (sometimes in combination with RLM 70, a black-green, and RLM 02, a light gray-green color.) The upper surface pattern was specified by the manufacturer, though decentralization of production meant that greater variation began to appear as the war progressed.

The first prototypes of the Fw-190D (Dora) series, (when) were modified Fw-190A (Anton) series production aircraft, and would have started out with some variation of the mid-war camouflage scheme above. New parts specifically made for the Dora prototypes were generally painted with whatever paint was at hand, giving the prototype aircraft a generally scruffy and patchy appearance, with some parts even left unpainted. It is unlikely that any of the prototypes would have been completely repainted at any point.

By the time the first production aircraft were on the assembly line, Luftwaffe camouflage for its fighter aircraft was undergoing a change. The Luftwaffe was now completely on the defensive, and concealment became a priority. The mixed grays, so good over large bodies of water like the Channel or Mediterranean, were less effective over the fields of Germany, and were highly visible parked around airfields. The RLM introduced the last change in Luftwaffe wartime camouflage in mid-1944, eliminating RLM 74 (dark gray-green) as a camouflage color and introducing two new colors; RLM 81 (a dark green-brown), RLM 82 (a medium green), and possibly a third, RLM 83 (a dark green.) Documentation for these new colors is scarce, and the general confusion in the German aircraft industry brought on by rapidly decentralized production, dwindling resources and constant air attack caused great variation in production values. and great variation existed in the color of the paints produced in this chaotic time.

Such was the variation in color of camouflage paints produced in 1944-45 that some contemporary experts have interpreted the extreme variation in undersurface colors as the introduction of a completely new undersurface color, referred to from time to time as RLM "84". Certainly this variation existed in all camouflage colors produced at the time, further complicated by shortages, which sometimes resulted in the use of whatever paint came to hand, or in some cases, the absence of paint altogether. Indeed, the existance of RLM 83 is tentative at best, only mentioned in one document, and the possibility exists that the variety of colors seen in upper surface colors could simply be the result of various interpretations of the specifications for RLM 81 & 82.

Paint applications were thinner and more cursory as time progressed. Parts came to the assembly line pre-painted. Indeed, in order to streamline production, it became common practice to leave large parts of the undersurfaces unpainted. Initially this was confined to a test batch of 50 Fw-190A fighter aircraft, but the practice soon became widespread. Fabric covered parts and parts prone to rusting were still painted, but other parts were left bare. This resulted in a very patchwork appearance to the undersurfaces of aircraft.

It was from this confused and chaotic situation that the first Doras emerged. Determining colors and markings can be challenging at best. Though more pictures are emerging every day, pictures of wartime Fw-190D series aircraft are still pretty rare, with reliable color photos almost non-existant. Identifying individual colors is mostly guesswork, as decentralization in the aircraft industry and the ongoing Allied bombing offensive had resulted in chaotic manufacturing conditions.

Thus, while every effort has been made to make these aircraft as accurate as possible to the original colors and markings, they are still nonetheless my interpretations, and must be taken as such.

For more information, please see "Late-War Camouflage".