Heater Ferris U.S. NAVY Camouflage

 In 1983-84 another experimental camouflage based on the Ferris scheme was developed by Lt. Cmdr. Chuck ‘Heater’ Heatley of the Naval Fighter Weapons School. The new scheme (popularly called Heater-Ferris) called for a graduated four-tone deceptive pattern running diagonally across the aircraft. The colors used, from lightest to darkest were.Light Gull Gray FS 36375 Light Sea Gray FS 36307 Blue Gray FS 35237Intermediate Blue FS 35164Light Sea Gray and Intermediate Blue had not been used on any post-war scheme, the former being a stone gray while the latter was the color that superseded the well-known wartime color, but which was slightly darker and grayer. The other two colors were also part of the TPS schemes that were being implemented around the same time. Although the scheme was successful during trials and nearly approved, it was ultimately deemed as not sufficiently superior to the TPS to justify widespread use. Notably, two squadrons of F-4S Phantoms (VF-301 and VF-302) used it operationally before their transition to F-14s.