Anti-flash white is a white colour commonly seen on British, Soviet, and U.S. nuclear bombers. The purpose of the colour is to reflect some of the thermal radiation from a nuclear explosion, protecting the aircraft and its occupants.
China Some variants of the Xian H-6 had the underside of the fuselage painted anti-flash white.
Soviet Union/Russia
Some nuclear bombers had the underside of the fuselage painted anti-flash white with the upper surfaces painted light silver-gray. This was true for the specially fitted, single Soviet Tu-95V bomber that test-deployed the most powerful bomb of any kind – the 50+ MT-rating Tsar Bomba on 30 October 1961 – as it had the anti-flash white on all its undersurfaces and sides.
The Tupolev Tu-160 of the 1980s was the first series-built Soviet/Russian bomber aircraft to be painted anti-flash white all over, leading to its Beliy Lebed ("White Swan") Russian nickname.
United Kingdom
Anti-flash white was used on the Royal Air Force V bombers force and the Royal Navy Blackburn Buccaneer when used in the nuclear strike role. Nuclear bombers were given – though not at first, until the problem was considered – salmon pink and baby blue roundels and fin flash rather than the traditional dark red, white and blue.
Anti-flash white was applied to several prototype aircraft, including the British Aircraft Corporation TSR-2. Paint used on the Avro Vulcan was manufactured by Cellon, and that on the Handley Page Victor by Titanine Ltd.
United States
Many Strategic Air Command nuclear bombers carried anti-flash white without insignia on the underside of the fuselage with light silver-gray or natural metal (later light camouflage) on the upper surfaces.Lake International Air Power Review Spring 2003, p. 121.
United States Navy E-6 Mercury remain painted in anti-flash white, as of October 2023.
Other aircraft
Concorde was painted white to reduce the effects of the sun's heat on its aluminum skin, which was already heated to more than at Mach 2 by aerodynamic heating.
Aircraft with at least part of the fuselage painted anti-flash white on nuclear delivery variants:
CF-105 Arrow prototypes
Xian H-6 / Myasishchev M-4 Tupolev Tu-16 Tupolev Tu-95 Tupolev Tu-22M Tupolev Tu-160
V bombers Avro Vulcan Handley Page Victor Vickers Valiant Blackburn Buccaneer English Electric Canberra (experimental) BAC TSR-2 prototype Saunders-Roe SR.53 interceptor prototype
Convair B-36 Boeing B-47 Stratojet Boeing B-52 Stratofortress North American A-5 Vigilante North American XB-70 Valkyrie prototype Rockwell B-1 Lancer prototype
See also Royal Air Force roundels Lists of colors The House in the Middle – film that demonstrates the thermal flash protective effects of the related white wash paint
References