Metal airplanes are different though. Take the tour of the desert boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base near Tucson, and you will see that the aluminum skin of those Cold War relics is virtually as good as the day it rolled off the assembly line. This means that if your paint is showing its age, you are not at all under the gun to repaint in order to save the aircraft. Realistically, you are probably painting just to replace some bad paint. If we are talking about your personal aircraft, then the real reason for new paint can be put down simply to pride of ownership.
Commercial aircraft are a different situation.
While the airlines repaint frequently, most flight schools and small charter operators regard paint as an unnecessary expense. Their profit margins are very small. They would much rather spend the money on mechanical work, or even an occasional paycheck. While these concerns are valid, I would also suggest these commercial operators take a look around their parking lot. Most of today's flight students and charter passengers are very successful people with incomes in the top 10 percent nationwide.