a sealing assembly on an aircraft exterior having several sealing elements , lying one behind the other in the flight direction . the contact surfaces of the sealing elements sit on a bearing surface . the sealing elements are attached to seal retainer elements . the rear end of each sealing element lies immediately adjacent to the front end of the subsequent sealing element located further back on the aircraft . adjacent sealing elements form a stepless contact surface and an essentially continuous top surface , interrupted only by the gaps between them . the front end of each rearward sealing element is mechanically coupled to the rear end of the adjacent forward sealing element in such a way that the gap lying between them is bridged . the front end of the sealing element located further to the rear is prevented from lifting relative to the rear end of the forward sealing element .