The ability of a corrosion detection system to sense corrosion in its earliest stages in aircraft applications is an important indicator of NDE system virtue. Microwave NDE is an emerging technology that uses the interaction between incident microwave radiation and the dielectric materials on the surface of the inspected item, including corrosion products, paints, and appliques, to detect the presence of corrosion. To assess the sensitivity of microwave methods to early corrosion product formation a series of aircraft aluminum plates with varying levels of corrosive exposure were fabricated as test specimens. The corroded plates were tested in raw format, either bare metal or with a scratched Allodine anti-corrosion coating, then covered with aircraft paints and appliques, and tested again. The ability of the microwave NDE sensor to detect corrosion was correlated with the exposure time of the specimens. The onset of corrosion detectability was discernible in the data. The influences of paint and applique coatings on detectability onset and the correlation of detection amplitude with corrosive exposure time is reportexk Key Words: Corrosion Detection Under Coatings in Aircraft; NDE of Corrosion Under Paint/Appliques