Red 9 with green nose

green nose and repaintings

File updated on September 20, 2012
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A rare color photo represents a downed Il-2 with unusual painting.

The plane is produced in Zavod 18 presumably in mid 1941 after the war's outbreak; it features the early type metal wing with ShVAK guns installed inside the ShKAS mg and landing lights on both the wings; the fuselage is already of the wooden type, and it seems that the canopy is still of the type with reduced armor.

The base camouflage is very worn and scarcely contrasting, and bears traces of a badly removed winter paint, and this suggests that the photo was taken in 1942. Even the star on the fuselage appears in such conditions.

A new red star with white outline and new non-standard gloss black bands were painted on the tail and rear fuselage, resulting well contrasting on the photo; perhaps the sides of the stabilizer and rudder were repainted green too.

After having corrected the shade of the photo for what it was possible, the spinner appears of a color comparable to that of the grass on the background and with the greenish zinc chromate on the inner side of the engine panel (different than the yellow zinc chromate of the frames of the elevator); its color could be a bright light green, perhaps the same A-7 utilized for the piping of the coolant.

Thanks to Aleksandr Ruchkovsky for the help.