Paint Shop Survey: Plenty of Good Picks

Prices used to be all over the map, but plan on at least $10,000 for quality paint on a single. And there’s rarely need to fly half a continent away to find a top shop.

There aren’t many certainties in the realm of aircraft maintenance, but we can think of at least one: Not every pilot knows a good paint job when he sees it, but anyone can spot a 100-footer that looks nice from across the ramp but is a speckled, orange-peeled mess when viewed at close range.