Fighters

The F-5 is a supersonic fighter combining low cost, ease of maintenance and great versatility. More than 2,000 F-5 aircraft have been procured by the USAF for use by allied nations.

Northrop F-5 flight: An air-to-air left rear view of an F-5 Tiger II aircraft banking to the left over a range. One AIM-9J Sidewinder missile is on each wing tip. The aircraft is assigned to the 57th Fighter Weapons Wing.

The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is a two-seat, twin-engined, all-weather, long-range supersonic interceptor fighter/fighter-bomber originally developed for the U.S. Navy by McDonnell Aircraft.

McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II side: An air-to-air right side view of an F-4 Phantom II aircraft from Pacific Missile Test Center.

Gripen is the first of the new generation, multi-role combat aircraft to enter service. Using the latest available technology it is capable of performing an extensive range of air-to-air and air-to-surface operational missions and employs the latest weapons.

Saab JAS 39 Gripen fighter: Gripen NG Demonstrator with Iris-T, Meteor and GBU10. Photographer: Katsuhiko TOKUNAGA. Copyright Gripen International.

Recognizing the utility and versatility of the Super Hornet, the Navy is modifying the F/A-18F to perform the airborne electronic attack (AEA) mission currently being flown by the EA-6B Prowlers.

EA-18G Growler - flight: Patuxent River, Md. (Aug. 2, 2006) - A new era in Naval Aviation begins with the first EA-18G Growler aircraft.

The Eurofighter Typhoon is a twin-engine canard-delta wing multirole aircraft.

Eurofighter Typhoon: June 2007 - The Royal Air Force assign Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) duties to Eurofighter Typhoon with two aircraft of No.3(F) Squadron ready to respond to any aircraft acting suspiciously or intruding illegally into UK airspace. Photo courtesy of Eurofighter Typhoon Media Library (www.eurofighter.com/medialibrary). Used by permission.

The Harrier today is one of the truly unique and most widely known of military aircraft. It is unique as the only fixed wing V/STOL aircraft in the free world.

AV-8B Harrier jet: An air-to-air view of a U.S. Marine Corps AV-8B Harrier II attack aircraft from Marine Attack Squadron 513 (VMA-513), Yuma Marine Corps Air Base, Ariz., during Operation Desert Shield.

The Blue Angels’ mission is to enhance Navy and Marine Corps recruiting efforts and to represent the naval service to the United States, its elected leadership and foreign nations.

F/A-18 Hornet: Blue Angels Navy Flight Demonstration Team

The Blue Angels serve as positive role models and goodwill ambassadors for the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps.

All-weather fighter and attack aircraft. The single-seat F/A-18 Hornet is the nation's first strike-fighter.

F/A-18 Hornet: An F/A-18C Hornet assigned to the Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 37 performs a supersonic pass.

The F-15 Eagle is an all-weather, extremely maneuverable, tactical fighter designed to permit the Air Force to gain and maintain air supremacy over the battlefield.

F-15 Eagle: OPERATION ALLIED FORCE -- An F-15C Eagle from the 48th Fighter Wing, Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England, breaks away from a 100th Air Expeditionary Wing KC-135R Stratotanker from Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England.

The U.S. Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron, the Thunderbirds, performs precision aerial maneuvers demonstrating the capabilities of Air Force high performance aircraft to people throughout the world.

Thunderbirds: F-16 Fighting Falcon: ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam -- The United States Air Force Demonstration Team "Thunderbirds" performs for the first time in 10 years here Sept. 12.

Following an intense four-year competition, the U.S. Department of Defense on 26 October 2001, named the Lockheed Martin lead Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) team as the winner of the contract to develop the F-35 JSF.

F-35-Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter: B-Variant testing

The F-35 team immediately entered the program’s 10-year System Development and Demonstration (SDD) phase.

The F-16 Fighting Falcon is a compact, multi-role fighter aircraft. It is highly maneuverable and has proven itself in air-to-air combat and air-to-surface attack.

F-16 Fighting Falcon: OPERATION NORTHERN WATCH -- An F-16 flying in support of Operation Northern Watch. (U.S. Air Force photo)

It provides a relatively low-cost, high-performance weapon system for the United States and allied nations.

The F-22 Raptor is the Air Force's newest fighter aircraft. Its combination of stealth, supercruise, maneuverability, and integrated avionics, coupled with improved supportability, represents an exponential leap in warfighting capabilities.

F-22 Raptor

The Raptor performs both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions allowing full realization of operational concepts vital to the 21st century Air Force.

The F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, variable sweep wing, two-place strike fighter manufactured by Grumman Aircraft Corporation.

F-14 Tomcat: A US Navy (USN) F-14D Tomcat aircraft assigned to Fighter Squadron Two (VF-2) takes off towing an aerial gunnery target, during Western Pacific 2001 (WESTPAC'01) deployment, in support of Operation SOUTHERN WATCH

Mission

The F-117A Nighthawk is the world's first operational aircraft designed to exploit low-observable stealth technology.

F-117A Nighthawk stealth fighter front: A US Air Force (USAF) F-117A Nighthawk Stealth Fighter aircraft flies over Nellis Air Force Base (AFB), Nevada (NV), during the joint service experimentation process dubbed Millennium Challenge 2002 (MC02).

This precision-strike aircraft penetrates high-threat airspace and uses laser-guided weapons against critical targets.