Vinyl wrap instead of respray ?

[tb10driver]

Hi all

The aircraft I currently have a share in is looking a bit tired and tatty from too many nights spent outside the hangar. Apart from a bare metal respray costing thousands of pounds has anyone ( or can it be done ) seen a aircraft wrapped in lightweight vinyl. I have seen vehicles that have had this done ( sky tv vans for example) but was wondering if it is allowed on an aircraft. Obviously vinyl is allowed to be put on the outer skin as most aircraft have the registration and certain decals on the side, under wings and tail fin etc made out of the stuff. Any guidance or previous experience is appreciated.

Many thanks.

Fgm

[fwjc]

I have seen permit aircraft imported from the USA which have been wrapped. It adds a significant amount of weight to entirely cover an aircraft. On a certified aircraft I would imagine that this would not be allowed, and neither would I recommend a full wrap on a permit aircraft.

Stripping down allows for a thorough inspection of the structure, rivets, overlaps etc. Wrapping hides any issues, and makes it harder to see any new issues that may be developing. In certain circumstances it could actually encourage problems, for example by trapping water.

Vinyl is better used as a trim / detail, for example to add the aircraft registration and some detailing down the fuselage.

[Mark 1]

It is becoming increasingly popular and weighs less (and costs less) than an equivalent paint job. I get the impression that fading may be an issue, especially for aircraft kept outside with a life of about 5-10 years.

You may want to read through this discussion (http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=110165) on another forum site.

[007helicopter]

Not sure if legal in the UK, this site may help AircraftWraps (http://www.aircraftwraps.com)

FWIW We get a considerable amounts of commercial vehicles with vinyl graphics, and fading is a real problem and most need changing after around 2 years.

[fwjc]

Maybe the local wrap is lighter; the weight of wrap and fabric I took off the tail of an imported aircraft was 15lb. The weight of the replacement fabric and paint was 8lbs.

It was rather excessive, to be fair.

[Zulu Alpha]

Its been done on at least two certified aircraft in the UK. Costs about £5-6K.

[tb10driver]

Many thanks for the responses so far, I had a feeling someone on here would have experience if it's possible or not. It's interesting to see that it can be done and looks good. The next stage is to find some one that fancies taking on the challenge.

[A and C]

I would not wrap an aircraft as I think it will hide serious corrosion issues and in aircraft that spend a lot of time outside it is likely to increase the speed that corrosion builds up.

If your aircraft is looking a bit tatty in the paintwork department a full strip prior to the respray will enable any corrosion issued to be addressed, wrapping the aircraft will just cover up the corrosion.

I would be far less concerned about wrapping a new aircraft that was hangared, but this is not the answer to old paintwork on an old aircraft that is left outside.