War is temporary, but music is eternal!

They began to decorate airplanes with images almost immediately after it appeared. combat aviation. It is believed that the first design applied to the fuselage of an aircraft was the image of a sea monster on the bow of a 1913 Italian flying boat.

Later, drawing a picture on an airplane began to be called nose art. Initially, the images on the planes resembled heraldic symbols, similar to those that ancient knights put on their shields. It is worth remembering the rearing stallion (cavallino rampante) of the Italian ace Francesco Baracchi. This coat of arms was later used by Ferrari.

Francesco Baraca poses in front of his plane!

Later, designs on airplanes became more varied. For example, storks were adorned on the fuselages of French aircraft from Escadrille les Cigognes.

Nose art became most popular in the US Air Force during World War II. The initiators of the coloring of the aircraft were often not the pilots, but the maintenance personnel. The development of nose art in the USA was greatly influenced by pin-ups. Thus, the image of a naked pin-up star of that era, Betty Grable, was displayed on many military aircraft. In the USSR, of course, such liberties were not allowed, but the designs on Soviet aircraft of that time were also distinguished by their beauty and sophistication.

Drawings began to be applied to the fuselage more often after the battle on Kursk Bulge in 1943, when the initiative passed to the Red Army. Often, next to the image on the plane, asterisks could be seen indicating the number of enemy aircraft shot down (Spanish pilots were the first to do this). On Soviet aircraft, victories could be indicated by stars of several colors. A personal victory was marked with one color, and planes shot down in a group were marked with another.

Many Soviet viewers were able to get acquainted with the drawings on airplanes thanks to the film “Only “old men” go into battle.” On the fuselage of the plane of squadron commander Alexei Titarenko, played by Leonid Bykov, a musical staff was depicted. The image of the notes is no coincidence. Such a drawing, for example, was on the plane of the Soviet attack pilot Vasily Emelianenko, who had a musical education.

Vasily Emelianenko's plane

The maestro himself!

Kostylev's La-5 aircraft on display at the Leningrad Defense Museum.

Captain Alexander Lobanov (left) and Major Alexander Pavlov next to the La-5FN, April 10, 1945

Lieutenant Zabiyaka G.I. against the backdrop of the registered Pe-2 205 series. The inscription "Bully" white, lightning - yellow


Lieutenant Gennady Tsokolaev. On board - the "Guard" emblem

Captain Alexander Nikolaevich Kilaberidze from the 65th GIAP in the cockpit of the Yak-9, Belarus, June 1944

“Lion Heart”, LaGG-3 Lieutenant Yuri Shchipov, 9th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Black Sea Fleet Air Force.

Squadron commander of the 566th ShAP Hero of the Soviet Union Vasily Mykhlik

The Il-2 Avenger aircraft was built at the expense of the collective farm chairman Grigor Tevosyan,

whose two brothers died in the war. Nelson Stepanyan flew on the plane.

Georgy Baevsky (right) and mechanic Sobakin against the backdrop of the Yak-9U. 5 GvIAP. Sprötau airfield, Germany. April 1945

On the fin of Leonid Galchenko's LAGG-3, instead of a red star, a black cat is depicted playing with a mouse.

1942 The cat was originally white

Malyutina Elena Mironovna and her swallow

Flight commander of the 180th Guards Fighter Stalingrad Red Banner Aviation Regiment

Major General Georgy Zakharov in the cockpit of the Yak-3. By plane - St. George the Victorious,

piercing a snake with the head of Goebbels. Spring 1945

Pilot of the 958th Assault Aviation Regiment, Hero of the Soviet Union Ivan Meilus .

Airacobra Vyacheslav Sirotin

Nikolai Proshenkov and his Airacobra

The Yak-9B aircraft of the commander of the 168th IAP, Lieutenant Colonel Grigory Kogrushev.

Captain Alexey Zakalyuk, 104th GvIAP

Alexey Alelyukhin's plane

Captain Georgy Urvachev (left)

Fighter pilot Vladimir Dmitriev

Aircraft of Senior Lieutenant Vasily Aleksukhin

Fedor Dobysh and Alexander Pomazunov against the backdrop of Pe-2 with a crocodile

Abrek Barsht's plane

Nikolai Didenko's plane

Airplane of Vladimir Pokrovsky

The commander of the Cherbourg squadron of the Normandy regiment, Marcel Lefevre, and his Soviet comrades (technician-lieutenant Tarasov and senior sergeant Kolupaev) at the Yak-9 fighter No. 14

They began decorating airplanes with images almost immediately after combat aviation appeared. It is believed that the first design applied to the fuselage of an aircraft was the image of a sea monster on the bow of a 1913 Italian flying boat.
Later, drawing a picture on an airplane began to be called nose art. Initially, the images on the planes resembled heraldic symbols, similar to those that ancient knights put on their shields. It is worth remembering the rearing stallion (cavallino rampante) of the Italian ace Francesco Baracchi. This coat of arms was later used by Ferrari.

Later, designs on airplanes became more varied. For example, storks were adorned on the fuselages of French aircraft from Escadrille les Cigognes. Nose art became most popular in the US Air Force during World War II. The initiators of the coloring of the aircraft were often not the pilots, but the maintenance personnel. The development of nose art in the USA was greatly influenced by pin-ups. Thus, the image of a naked pin-up star of that era, Betty Grable, was displayed on many military aircraft. In the USSR, of course, such liberties were not allowed, but the designs on Soviet aircraft of that time were also distinguished by their beauty and sophistication. Many Soviet viewers were able to get acquainted with the drawings on airplanes thanks to the film “Only “old men” go into battle.” On the fuselage of the plane of squadron commander Alexei Titarenko, played by Leonid Bykov, a musical staff was depicted. The image of the notes is no coincidence. Such a drawing, for example, was on the plane of the Soviet attack pilot Vasily Emelianenko, who had a musical education. Here we also remember the plane that Utesov’s ensemble gave to Soviet pilots during the war. Cases when airplanes were built at the expense of citizens were not uncommon. Such fighters usually had an inscription indicating whose money the machine was created with. Sometimes there was a small image next to the inscription.


Kostylev's La-5 aircraft on display at the Leningrad Defense Museum.


Captain Alexander Lobanov (left) and Major Alexander Pavlov next to the La-5FN, April 10, 1945


Lieutenant Zabiyaka G.I. against the backdrop of the registered Pe-2 205 series. The inscription “Bully” is white, the lightning is yellow


Lieutenant Gennady Tsokolaev. On board - the "Guard" emblem


Captain Alexander Nikolaevich Kilaberidze from the 65th GIAP in the cockpit of the Yak-9, Belarus


“Lionheart”, LaGG-3 Lieutenant Yuri Shchipov, 9th Air Force Fighter Regiment




Squadron commander of the 566th ShAP Hero of the Soviet Union Vasily Mykhlik


The Il-2 Avenger aircraft was built at the expense of the collective farm chairman Grigor Tevosyan, whose two brothers died in the war. Nelson Stepanyan flew on the plane.


Georgy Baevsky (right) and mechanic Sobakin against the backdrop of the Yak-9U. 5 GvIAP. Sprötau airfield, Germany. April 1945


On the fin of Leonid Galchenko's LAGG-3, instead of a red star, a black cat is depicted playing with a mouse. 1942 The cat was originally white


Malyutina Elena Mironovna and her swallow


Flight commander of the 180th Guards Fighter Stalingrad Red Banner Aviation Regiment of the Guard, Senior Lieutenant Viktor Lukoshkov against the background of the La-5FN, July 19


Major General Georgy Zakharov in the cockpit of the Yak-3. On the plane - St. George the Victorious, piercing a snake with the head of Goebbels. Spring 1945

Pilot of the 958th Assault Aviation Regiment, Hero of the Soviet Union Ivan Meilus.


Airacobra Vyacheslav Sirotin



Eagle by Mikhail Avdeev


Vasily Emelianenko's plane


Nikolai Proshenkov and his Airacobra


The Yak-9B aircraft of the commander of the 168th IAP, Lieutenant Colonel Grigory Kogrushev.


Captain Alexey Zakalyuk, 104th GvIAP


Alexey Alelyukhin's plane


Captain Georgy Urvachev (left)


Fighter pilot Vladimir Dmitriev


Aircraft of Senior Lieutenant Vasily Aleksukhin


Fedor Dobysh and Alexander Pomazunov against the backdrop of Pe-2 with a crocodile


Abrek Barsht's plane


Nikolai Didenko's plane


Airplane of Vladimir Pokrovsky
Drawings on combat aircraft during the Great Patriotic War were not encouraged, although they turned a blind eye to this. Drawings began to be applied more often to the fuselage after the Battle of Kursk in 1943, when the initiative passed to the Red Army. Often, next to the image on the plane, asterisks could be seen indicating the number of enemy aircraft shot down (Spanish pilots were the first to do this). On Soviet aircraft, victories could be indicated by stars of several colors. A personal victory was marked with one color, and planes shot down in a group were marked with another.
There were cases when the fuselage was decorated with the image of the “Golden Star” received for a victory. Old traditions have also been preserved: the nose of a fighter sometimes resembled the mouth of a mythical monster. In general, drawings and emblems that frightened the enemy were often applied. For example, a dragon was depicted on Gugridze’s Yak-9 fighter, and Georgy Kostylev’s plane had a toothy mouth.
There were no special rules for applying emblems. Each squadron had its own customs. Some pilots had their own emblem, others had a common one for everyone. Often the planes were decorated with cards or a specific suit. As a rule, it was an ace. It was usually applied by distinguished pilots. Thus, aces were painted on the La-5 aircraft of Alexander Pavlov, on the LaGG-3 of Yuri Shilov.
Those who managed to shoot down a German plane from the famous squadron placed the emblem of that squadron or other similar symbol pierced by an arrow or entwined with a snake on the fighter. For example, the planes of the squadron of the 9th Guards Regiment, commanded by Alexey Alelyukhin, carried on their sides an emblem with a leopard tearing the heart, invented by pilot Evgeny Dranishchev. This indicated that the pilots had defeated the aces of 9 Staffel JG 52 (the heart under the cockpit was their distinctive sign). Animals were often depicted on Soviet military aircraft. Drawings of birds were also common. Thus, similar images were on the planes of such famous pilots as Mikhail Avdeev, Vladimir Pokrovsky, Vyacheslav Sirotin. Symbolic images, such as arrows and lightning, were especially popular.

There is already a lesson on the site. In this lesson you will be able to draw a military aircraft from World War II step by step. Drawing this military aircraft will not be difficult for you, take a sheet of whatman paper and a simple pencil and you will see it. Even children can do this lesson, try it.

1. How to draw the basic contours of an airplane

First of all, draw a horizontal, barely noticeable line; it will help you more accurately draw the main contours of the fighter. By the way, in those days this (English) plane had beautiful name The Supermarine Spitfire was considered one of the best. And besides, since 1942, Soviet pilots have also flown on it. In total, the Soviet side accepted 143 such vehicles from Great Britain during the war. Draw a line for the wings, tail and draw an oval.

2. Contours of the aircraft body


Start this drawing step with a triangle for the tail, add another one to the oval and draw two connecting lines. Now the drawing has become similar to a military aircraft.

3. Thin the drawing along the previous contours


This drawing step is perhaps the most difficult, since you need to draw the final outline of the nose, cockpit and tail of the aircraft. Take your time, look carefully at my drawing and make the same additions. You need to "lengthen" and "flatten" the oval of the nose, change the shape of the cockpit, round off the sharp edges of the triangle and start drawing the wing.

4. How to draw wings


After you have removed the now unnecessary initial outlines, you can start drawing the wings and the screw mount. This is not a jet plane, I just did not draw the propeller blades because they are not visible during rotation. But for greater clarity, you can draw them. The propeller has two blades, not four, like helicopter. Start drawing the wings. The left wing in the picture should be slightly longer than the right.

5. Finishing touches of the drawing


You see, step by step and quite simply, you have already been able to draw a real military aircraft. All that remains is to add a few details, carefully and accurately draw the cabin and you can proceed to the last stage.

6. Tone painting of a military aircraft with a pencil


This tutorial is done entirely in pencil, but you can use colored pencils for the last step. Just don’t rush to paint with paints, as you can ruin the whole drawing. But, if you have experience, then paint with paints. For greater realism, draw clouds, rays of the sun and the earth's surface far below. Don't forget that this military aircraft was flying at an altitude of up to 5 km.
18/06/2014

Video on how to draw a fighter jet.


Space Shuttle is a spaceship and an airplane at the same time. This is the only type of spacecraft that can independently return from space to Earth. But the Shuttle cannot rise into orbit on its own; it is launched into orbit by launch vehicles.


Drawing a helicopter is a little more difficult than drawing an airplane, since it has a lot of details and it is more difficult to maintain their proportions in the drawing. The rotating blades of a helicopter are especially difficult to draw correctly. But if you color it with colored pencils, the picture of the helicopter will be very bright and attractive.


Nowadays it is rare to find wooden sailing ships, but every boy would like to visit a sailboat. I think if there was a choice between an airplane and a sailing frigate, everyone would choose the sailboat.


The tank is one of the most complex military vehicles in design. The most important thing is to correctly draw the base of the tank, and then just add other details. Draw military planes in the sky above the tanks, this will add dynamism to the picture.


Sports cars are very popular these days. They have a dynamic, beautiful design and attractive streamlined body parts. But this attractiveness gives a slight disadvantage to drawing such cars. It is very difficult to convey its unusual shape of the hood and other details.


It would seem so easy to draw a star, but try to draw a star of the correct shape without reading this lesson. It's unlikely that you will succeed. You will need this lesson if you are drawing stars on board a military aircraft.

The tradition of putting pictures on combat vehicles dates back to the First World War, its founders were the Germans, but the Americans supported this tradition and deeply developed it. This kind of “rock” painting is called Nose Art

The heyday of Nose Art was the Second World War, - almost all American aircraft had their own names, and, apparently, about half of the aircraft had designs on the nose. The subjects were very different, but most often they were cartoon characters or girls drawn in pin-up style. Nose Art was approved by the Air Force command as raising morale and providing some psychological support to the crew. American psychologists who studied the phenomenon of Aircraft Nose Art believe that in this way the plane was humanized, reminded the pilot of home and peaceful life, and served as a kind of psychological protection from war. Nowadays, pilots flying historical aircraft also apply Nose Art to their cars, either in the classic form, or create original images.

Aviation Nose Art arose along with military aviation. Here is the airplane of the Italian World War I ace Francesco Baracca

The heyday of Nose Art was the Second World War.
Almost all American aircraft had their own names. There are no exact statistics, but, apparently, about half of the aircraft carried Nose Art designs.

Most convenient place For placement of Nose Art naturally are the bows of bombers. There is a lot of space, there is room to spread out. Boeing B-17G N9323Z

Boeing B-17G N900RW.

Boeing B-17G N3193G and girls again.

The Liberator has even more space for pictures! Consolidated B-24A (LB-30) Liberator N24927

True, later this plane was repainted in a protective color and the following graphics appeared on it.

And this is Strawberry Butch from the Air Force Museum in Dayton. Consolidated B-24D Liberator 42-72843.

"Betty's Dream" (?) B-25J N5672V

Sad Angela, TB-25N N345BG.

Apache Princess, B-25J N1943J.

Nose Art was approved by the Air Force command as raising morale and providing some psychological support to the crew.
There were also restrictions. Drawings, as a rule, were worn only by combat aircraft, and in naval aviation Nose Art was completely prohibited.

Zodiac signs. Scales

Eagle with a bomb. B-25C N3774.

Corporal Ruby Newell - the most beautiful girl in the unit - near her portrait:

The crews painted the planes exclusively at their own expense. This was done by both amateurs and professionals who served in units - former artists, cartoonists.

Russians Get Ya! B-25J N747AF.

Pin-up girls were much more common than real wives and girlfriends. Often these works were copies of magazine drawings.

As noted, in the Pacific theater of operations the girls were for some reason much lighter dressed than in Europe.

Night mission

Douglas B-26 N7705C

The most common Aircraft Nose Art design is the shark's mouth, which was invented during the First World War.

The huge nose air intake on the P-40 aircraft made it possible to draw such impressive shark mouths. Curtiss P-40N Warhawk NL40PN.

On Mustangs the nose was narrower, and their Nose Art often crawled under the cabin. Although there were also shark mouths. P-51D Mustang NL68JR.

Kid with tommy gun. P-51D Mustang NL151HR.

Later work, Big Boss with a machine gun on the racing Grumman F7F-3 Tigercat NX805MB.

On Thunderbolts, it was convenient to paint Nose Art on the massive engine cowlings. Pink Dumbo on P-47D 45-49167, Air Force Museum.

Neanderthal, Republic P-47D Thunderbolt NX47DA.

The US Air Force Museum in Dayton houses large collection Nose Art graphics in the form of fuselage skin sheets taken from scrapped B-52 bombers of various modifications. As a reminder of long past, but turbulent times.

Lockheed PV-2 Harpoon N7670C.

Transport aircraft. Despite its rather large size, the nose of the famous DC-3 is relatively small and it is quite difficult to draw grandiose Nose Art on it. DC-3 N47HL.

Cards, dice, four-leaf clovers are symbols of good luck.

"Delivery of Generals". DC-3 N7772 at the EAA Museum.

Smaller transport aircraft, the C-45, also did not lag behind their larger counterparts in Nose Art. Beech C-45G N7694C.

Beech C-45H N167ZA.

Redhead. Beech C-45H N9550Z.

"Difficult child"

After the Vietnam War, Nose Art practically disappeared and gradually returned only in the 1980s. It was believed that this would restore the continuity of glorious military traditions.

Contemporary original creativity. Dee Howard 500 N500HP.

A cat sets a missile on a MiG-29

In 2007, the British Ministry of Defense banned the use of images of girls as potentially offensive to female personnel. Now the procedure is more complicated: first, the crew submits a Nose Art sketch to their commander, and he must approve the drawing with the air wing command.