A NEW COAT FOR THE SUPERJUMBO JET

Text by Ge Rufeng Translation by Leo Photos by Zeng Jian, Tian Yu, Liu Yunping

A NEW COAT FOR THE SUPERJUMBO JET

Text by Ge Rufeng Translation by Leo Photos by Zeng Jian, Tian Yu, Liu Yunping

Unlike mankind who changes frequently, aircraft have to wait for fi ve years on average to get a new coat and most of them wear only one style of coat throughout their lifetime.

In June, two Airbus A320 aircraft, named “Meihao Chongqing” (or “Glory of Chongqing”) and“Chongqing Shiguang” (or “Good Times of Chongqing”), went through a process of recoating at Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Co., Ltd. (GAMECO), just days after an Airbus A380 aircraft was given a fresh new look. The two A320s belong to the fl eet owned by Chongqing Airlines, a Chongqing-based local air carrier majority-owned by China Southern.

According to Mr. Wu Pengfei, head of the paint shop of GAMECO'S Overhaul Service, most passenger airplanes will experience the problem of paint fading every fi ve years, which may make their appearance less appealing. That is why they require repainting at regular intervals.

盛夏6月，南航旗下重慶航空兩架A320飛機“美好重慶號”“重慶時光號”先后在廣州飛機維修工程有限公司噴漆。就在重航這兩架飛機素顏換華服前幾天，南航A380也在此噴漆，煥然一新。

［left］On 10 June 2017, China Southern Air Media's online livestreaming brand“Outlook Pie” became the first media outlet in China to take a up-close look at the process of painting on the skin of an aircraft. Meanwhile, the Decode Aviation, a key comopent of Outlook Channel also took a full recording of how an aircraft is re-coated.6月10日，南航傳媒網絡直播品牌“發現派”在國內首次采用互聯網直播的形式，近距離展示飛機彩繪過程。同時，發現之旅頻道重點欄目《解構飛行》也全程錄制了飛機“換衣”。

Steps to Recoating換裝全過程

It is told that up to two tonnes of paint are needed to re-coat a superjumbo jet A380, the largest of all civil passenger aircraft, for the area painted extends beyond 4,000 square metres, which is as large as 10 standard basketball courts or equivalent to the total painted area of fi ve A320s.

1. When an aircraft is ready in the paint shop, aircraft structural engineers will examine the exterior of the aircraft and take steps to protect all areas of the aircraft not being repainted. These include fl ight deck windshields, cabin windows and wingtip lights.

停場準備接受噴漆的飛機進入噴漆機庫后，有專門的機務結構工程師對飛機外表進行結構檢查。同時，噴漆人員對駕駛艙玻璃、舷窗、翼尖燈等不需要噴漆的部位進行包裹。

空中巨無霸的新衣

與穿著花枝招展的人類相比，飛機的衣裝平均5年才換一次，而絕大多數飛機一輩子只有一款新衣。

2. When everything is ready, painters will fi rst remove the existing paint (topcoat and primer) by way of either physical stripping or chemical stripping. Physical stripping involves the use of sanders to remove the paint while chemical stripping causes the paint to peel off through

chemical reactions.一切就緒，噴漆人員首先要將飛機原有的漆層處理掉。通常有兩種方法，一種是物理方法，利用打磨器將漆層打磨掉；一種是化學方法，使用褪漆劑，與漆層發生反應，使其剝離脫落。

3. After the existing coats are stripped, the painters will paint a new layer of primer onto the skin of the plane. The primer plays the role of strengthening the bond between the skin and the topcoat as well as of resisting corrosion.

完成原有漆層處理后，噴漆人員首先為飛機噴上一層底漆。底漆就像一種黏合劑，一方面增強飛機蒙皮與面漆的結合度，另一方面起到防腐作用。

4. A layer of topcoat is then applied upon the primer. The topcoat looks smoother and more shiny than the primer, giving the aircraft a more attractive appearance.

噴完底漆，再噴面漆。相對底漆而言，面漆更光滑，色澤度更高。面漆讓飛機更加光鮮亮麗。

5. Then an airline's logo and required marks are painted on the fuselage. Finally, a layer of clearcoat will be applied to complete the refi nished work. The clearcoat is used to deliver the ultimate protection, shine and glamour.

再之后噴繪的是機身上的Logo，以及民航適航飛機要求的維護標志。最后，還要再噴一層透明的清漆，才算大功告成。清漆的作用是在外表形成一層透明的保護膜，保護內部漆層，也使噴繪圖案的立體感更強。