Automotive & Transportation Air Display Colorants: Bright, primary colorants for the aerobatic display market

Military air forces and some private aerobatic teams enliven the skies by trailing bright colors behind them as they perform aerial maneuvers. Such breathtaking displays –– called “aerobatic display smoke” by some –– serve multiple purposes. They can be beautiful, entertaining, and can even instill national pride as they paint the skies in the colors of a country’s flag. Just as importantly, these trails also serve as a safety feature for pilots by providing them with vital visual references as they perform their complex maneuvers.

Aerobatic display colorants

Milliken offers all colorants used in these aerobatic displays. Based on liquid technology, these products are modified, highly soluble versions of powder dyes in high strength solutions, created specifically for use in aerobatic displays.

The colorant is injected into the hot air in the jet exhaust or self-contained smoke pod, where the heat evaporates the solvent and sublimates the dye into a gas. As the sublimated dye reaches the cool air it condenses to produce the colored smoke trail.

Specialized airborne colorants

Milliken offers specialized color matching and blending facilities to create a limitless number of shades to meet every need. These colorants are compatible with all types of on-board generators used to create the airborne colors. In the meantime, we continue to actively develop next generation technology.

REACH compliance

The products Milliken offers for aerobatic display are all compliant with REACH.