Why are there several overlapping coats of paint that are peeling off? I thought this was the new and flashy Boeing plane? The airline was Scoot.
Hi, aircraft mechanic here. I don’t have a lot of experience with the 787, but here’s what I know based on composites, working PAX service, and general airplane BS.
787’s are new-ish, but not THAT new. An airplane even a year old can start to show wear and tear depending on the carrier.
787’s have composite wings, which flex a LOT. Great for performance, no so great for rigid bits like paint.
Aircraft paint is typically a two-part mixture with an epoxy resin base. It’s pretty tough stuff designed to handle temperature changes, UV, abrasion, etc. That being said, paint mixed later in service for repairs might not quite match in color and texture. If the airline buys cheap paint to cut costs, well, it’s going to flake off quicker.
Typically, your brushed-on paint done during overnight maintenance isn’t going to last as long as the paint sprayed on in a clean, well prepared environment with even application. It’s likely you will have to repaint that area.
When I worked PAX, we took extra care to keep the top of the wing painted in good condition and avoid using speed tape to temporarily cover missing paint patches unless absolutely necessary. It’s well known this is a high visibility area for customers. From what I recall, the airline would respray entire areas of the aircraft as needed during heavy checks to keep the paint in good condition. Cargo service? Who cares! As long as it meets airworthiness requirements per the manufacturer, send it! Most of the time, the paint is such a poor match it sticks out like a sore thumb. I recall seeing a 747 freighter at one point that looked like it had a green, receding hairline from all the exposed primer it had running down the hump.So, all things considered, yes, that paint job looks terrible. However, it’s not going to affect the performance of the aircraft. Any exposed composite is going to get covered or painted as soon as it’s spotted to help protect it and prevent further paint erosion. If anything, all those paint patches might cost the airline a few extra drops (and I do mean drops) of fuel by the end of the flight from parasitic drag.
Holy shit, this is the first time in Lemmy I’ve seen someone ask and obscure question and a person in a specialized profession answered. That used to happen on Reddit all the time, but I didn’t think Lemmy had a critical mass of users.
* non-Linux obscure question
Yeah, that’s the one area that Lemmy excels at. Going to Reddit for Linux advice will be hit-or-miss, but Lemmy will give you the right answer straight away.
Of course.
I know it’s a bit more niche here, so I try to chime in when I see airplane stuff. An account I had on a now-defunct instance had a bunch of airplane memes and comments.
We need some Lemmy gold or something, so we can get the “thank you kind stranger” comments lol
this was some of the most insightful shit I’ve read on Lemmy in a while. thanks for this - well written and easy to follow for an aerospace noob.
When working with windmil blades we used to call it a gel coat and the reason it gets replaced often is if water gets under the gelcoat the composite would delaminate, which is very very bad. This was of prime importance for blades that ended up in the sea or near sea air.
Absolutely on the delamination. Paint on metal can go for a minute and be okay as long as there’s primer still protecting the metal; but on composite the flaking will just lead to more flaking. Plus, the water intrusion damage and wicking you can get with carbon fiber. Gotta check that stuff often.
Nice username
https://www.planespotters.net/airline/Scoot
The average age of their 787-8 fleet is 7.8 years and 787-9 is 8.8 years so not brand new. Being a low cost carrier I suspect they don’t invest too much in maintaining their paint jobs.
Also, composites tend to flex more than metal. And the 787 uses a shitload more composites than pretty much any other civilian airframe.
Just be glad it’s actual repairs and not just entirely coated in speed tape.
- Wing flexing → causes microcracks in paint
- UV exposure → leads to fading and degradation
- Temperature changes → cause thermal stress
- Chemicals (de-icing fluids, fuel) → damage coating
- Maintenance wear → walking, tools cause abrasion
It’d look worse without the patches to be fair.
Is the 787 built from composite materials? I remember some newer Airbus planes had issues with paint because of the new lighter materials somehow.
Composite materials are more flexible, the increased flexing can cause the paint to crack
Makes sense. Thanks!
50% of the aircraft is composites. The leading edge of the wings is aluminum while I believe the rest is composites.
This problem did not impact the 787, supposedly, but it does look there’s a lot of cracks on that wing paint.
thankfully they posted no step in tiny letters at the edge of the giant wing
I think that just applies for the leading edge.
I don’t have an answer for you, but I like the photo
People already came and shared their knowledge. My first thought was vitiligo - I don’t want that to be hurtful for anyone who experiences it, I just saw the plane as a living entity and it’s paint was multi-toned and it’s what came to mind. No shade, no judgment. I have three colors: red, white, and peel - so anyone with melanin anywhere is ahead of the curve on me!
omg you need to get off now!
Because you touch yourself at night.
Not sure if downvotes because people missed the reference or they really don’t like Family Guy for some reason
I love family guy, but this was a stupid reply with no relevance to the question being asked. Now if OP had asked why the dinosaurs died out, that would have been a different story.
