I visited the US Air & Space Museum the other day and say an employee polishing one of the WWII bombers.
Why were so many planes of that era “shiny” rather than painted? Did the paint add too much weight? Was labor so cheap that paying for polishers cost less than paint? Or did some generals just thought it looked cool?
The majority of WWII planes were painted in various camouflage patterns. Some - not “so many” by any means - were silver, and these tended to be US late-war planes, such as the B29 Superfortress and the P51 Mustang. At the height they flew camouflage was irrelevant, and the extra drag and weight of paint became more significant at the higher speeds late-war planes could reach.
