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Almost all cockpit panels of Russian aircraft types are painted in turquoise, whereas elsewhere the cockpit panels usually exhibit a dark grey color. As this "rule" seems to be quite prevalent, I am curious as to the reason/origin.

This can be seen in the cockpit of Mikoyan MiG-31:

MiG-31 cockpit
Image Source

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    $\begingroup$ I just noticed that this aircraft has the white stripe down the center of the instrument panel. - I have heard that pilots are trained to "put the stick on the stripe" as part of the spin recovery procedure. $\endgroup$
    – A. I. Breveleri
    Apr 8, 2018 at 16:44
  • $\begingroup$ I wonder if they wore polarized visors? The brighter the color, the more the possibility of reflected glare, but polarization tends to make reflected glare less of a problem anyway. Polarization tends not to be compatible with LED screens but I don't see any of those here... $\endgroup$
    – quiet flyer
    Apr 6, 2020 at 19:16
  • $\begingroup$ @quietflyer polarization is fine with LCDs as long as they're polarized the same way as the glasses. I can see my phone or car's LCD screen fine with polarized sunglasses. Maybe most avionics LCDs are polarized the opposite way? $\endgroup$
    – Someone
    Jul 31 at 15:40

4 Answers 4

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According to Cold War Air Museum:

...the color chosen by Soviet designers helps to reduce stress and maintain a pilot's effectiveness on long missions.

... the scientists found out that this color keeps pilots awake and not getting tired by the black or grey of a cockpit panel, especially under terms and condition of long range flights or under heavy work load.

This URL contains a color guide for cockpits.

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    $\begingroup$ McDonnell-Douglas also used this color on the DC-9/MD-80. upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/DC-9_Cockpit.jpg $\endgroup$
    – Sports Racer
    Jun 30, 2015 at 15:57
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    $\begingroup$ Now, I hope this will spawn the obvious opposite question. $\endgroup$
    – O. R. Mapper
    Jun 30, 2015 at 19:30
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    $\begingroup$ @O.R.Mapper It did. $\endgroup$
    – Lilienthal
    Jul 1, 2015 at 14:11
  • $\begingroup$ Any word on exactly what date this was taken up? MiG-15's in the Korean war? $\endgroup$
    – DrZ214
    Oct 2, 2015 at 8:57
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    $\begingroup$ @DrZ214: The interior of a Korean war era MiG-15 cockpit was mostly a sort of light battleship grey, shading a little toward sky-blue. The instrument panel was matte, almost flat, black, and the default color for the instrument faces was black with white indices and dials. - I think the MiG-17 got the modern turquoise interior. $\endgroup$
    – A. I. Breveleri
    Dec 16, 2016 at 16:30
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Soviet defector and MiG-25 Pilot Viktor Belenko claimed that this was done because it was found to be more soothing and relaxing for the flight crew to operate in a blue-green painted cockpit. This color was very common in both Russian military and civilian aircraft during the Cold War era.

I’m not sure but I suspect Boeing did the same thing when choosing the light earth color for their jetliner cockpits.

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Years ago I have found explanation on one Russian aviation site. The main reasons why Russian use this shade of green is that it does not create residual picture in your eyes. The same reason why surgeons have green protective robes. You can look inside the cockpit, and swiftly look outside and you will not see residual instrument panel picture.

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the real reason is tactical lighting. not all russian aircraft have the turquoise/jade colors cockpits. use red lights for tactical night operation, and very little light can be seen out from the cockpits. russian helicopters and cargo that are design to operate in tactical night ops have also this feature.

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    $\begingroup$ So turquoise would reflect less red light than other cockpit colors ? $\endgroup$
    – tssch
    Dec 25, 2015 at 14:57
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    $\begingroup$ Sources would improve this answer. BTW the least reflective color is black, but I believe additives can be added to any paint to make it shinier, or conversely, not added. $\endgroup$
    – DrZ214
    Dec 16, 2016 at 21:06

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