I think white on top (contrast vs ground clutter) and dark on the
underside
(contrast vs sky) works well, like, for example, the factory Mooney
schemes,
http://www.mooney.com/ .

"Dennis O'Connor" wrote in message
...
A study within the military showed that the most visible color for
identifying the shape of a plane against any background, is a solid, dark
blue...
Now, don't shoot the messenger as he has a tender hide... If you don't
like
the message, do your own research...

No shots fired. :-) Do you have a reference for the study?

I remember the RAF Tornados getting painted black all over some years ago
after similar studies. Presumably they get repainted before going into
action.

I'd hesitate to paint a GA aircraft dark on top unless it was going to spend
most of its time in the shade.

Julian