Historical primers and paints used for aeronautical protection and colouring during WWII: A multi-techniques approach on archaeological parts

•Multi-techniques for consistent determination of historical aeronautical paints composition.•Identification of the main fillers and pigments in the aeronautical paints of four nations: Germany, France, USA and Italy.•Nitrocellulose base-paint was traditionally applied on French and German WWII aircraft.•Study providing useful information for conservation and restoration. Aeronautics for military or civil applications effectively pushed scientists, engineers and industrial leaders to invent and produce increasingly efficient materials. Aluminium alloys are among the most important strategic materials used in aircraft manufacturing. Consequently, so are the protective coatings (primers and paints). After decades of burial, World War II (WWII) wrecks provide a tremendous amount of archaeological information on this period of intense technological research. In this article, the original protective coatings of ten samples collected on WWII wrecks and one collection aircraft were studied. Information was retrieved thanks to a multi-techniques approach: SEM-EDS, Raman spectroscopy and XRD to identify the nature of the mineral compounds (fillers and pigments) and FTIR, Py-GC–MS and NMR to identify the organic binders of the paints and primers. This information will help conserve this valuable 20th century Industrial Heritage.