Aircraft Ceramic Coating and Paint Protection in Atlanta

• Corrected before coated
• Aviation-specific coating systems
• Applied in your hangar, not a shop
• Written care plan included

What aircraft ceramic coating is

Aircraft ceramic coating is a hard, hydrophobic protective layer that bonds to an aircraft's paint after the paint has been corrected, shielding the finish from UV, exhaust soot, bug acid and oxidation. It does not repair paint. It protects paint that is already in good condition, which is why correction always comes first.

Obsidian Aviation corrects and coats aircraft paint inside the owner's hangar anywhere in metro Atlanta, including PDK, FTY, RYY, LZU, FFC and ATL. Call 770-480-0372.

The math on aircraft paint

Repainting a single-engine aircraft is a five-figure event. Repainting a light jet is six figures, and it takes the aircraft out of service for weeks while it happens.

Paint does not fail all at once. It fails from the top layer down. UV breaks down the clear coat, oxidation follows, and once oxidation reaches primer there is no polishing it back. In Georgia, the combination of UV hours, heat, humidity and pollen does that work faster than in most of the country, and an aircraft that lives on a ramp rather than in a hangar ages faster still.

A ceramic coating does three things that matter financially. It puts a sacrificial, UV-resistant layer above your clear coat, so the sun attacks the coating instead of the paint. It makes the surface hydrophobic and slick, so soot, bug residue and de-ice fluid release with far less mechanical effort. And because each wash takes less scrubbing, the coating reduces the cumulative abrasion that routine cleaning inflicts on paint over years.

The second and third effects compound. Owners on a coated aircraft typically spend less per wash cycle for the life of the coating, which offsets a meaningful share of the coating cost before the protection value is even counted.

Protecting paint is cheaper than restoring it, and restoring it is cheaper than replacing it. The only expensive option is doing nothing.

How we correct and coat aircraft paint

Stage 1: Paint assessment

We evaluate paint depth, oxidation level, defect type, and whether the finish is a candidate for correction at all. Some aircraft have thin clear coat or prior repairs that make aggressive correction unwise. We will tell you when that is the case and recommend a protective approach instead.

Stage 2: Decontamination

Full wash, belly degrease and chemical decontamination to strip bonded contaminants. Anything left on the surface at this stage gets sealed under the coating permanently, so this stage does not get rushed.

Stage 3: Paint correction

Machine correction calibrated to the finish, removing oxidation, swirl marks, wash haze and light defects. Aircraft finishes vary enormously in hardness and thickness, so pad and compound selection is made per aircraft, not per price tier. Control surfaces, composite fairings and thin-paint areas are handled with reduced aggression or by hand.

Stage 4: Panel prep

The surface is stripped of polishing oils so the coating bonds to paint rather than to residue. This is the step that separates a coating that lasts years from one that sheets off in months.

Stage 5: Coating application

An aviation-appropriate ceramic system is applied panel by panel in controlled conditions inside your hangar, with cure time managed before the aircraft is released.

Stage 6: Care plan and handoff

Photo documentation, a written maintenance-wash protocol and a recommended inspection interval. A coating maintained with the wrong soap does not last, so we tell you exactly how to wash it, or we do it for you on a cycle.

Protection levels

Exact service life depends on the coating system selected, how the aircraft is stored, how it is flown and how it is washed. We give a specific expectation in writing with your quote rather than a marketing number.

When we will tell you not to buy this

Ceramic coating is oversold across the detailing industry, and we would rather be the operator who says so.

A coating does not fix paint. It seals in whatever condition the paint is in, which is why correction comes first and why coating over oxidized paint is malpractice.

A coating is not a scratch shield. It resists chemical etching and makes cleaning easier. It does not stop hangar rash or a ramp cart.

A coating will not survive bad washing. Harsh soap, dirty mitts and automatic brushes degrade a coating quickly. If the aircraft is going to get washed badly, the money is wasted.

And if your aircraft is scheduled for paint within a year or two, the right answer is usually to skip the coating, do a correction for presentation if you need it, and coat the new paint when it comes out of the paint shop. Coating fresh paint at the start of its life is where this service returns the most.

Aircraft ceramic coating pricing in Atlanta

Coating price is driven by surface area, current paint condition and how much correction the finish needs before coating. Correction is the variable, not the coating itself. A well-kept aircraft needs a single-stage polish. A neglected one needs multi-stage correction, and that is where the hours go.

Published industry references place full ceramic treatment on larger business aircraft as high as roughly ten thousand dollars, with light aircraft a fraction of that. We quote firm and in writing after a paint assessment, and we will always show you the option one step down from what we are recommending so you can see the tradeoff.

Figures above are third-party industry references for context, not Obsidian Aviation's rates.

Ceramic coating is one part of a full care program. See our full aircraft detailing services in Atlanta, and for leading edges, stacks and spinners, brightwork and metal polishing.