Based on the annual report of the Flight Global website (World Air Forces Report 2023), the flugrevue resource.de presented its rating of the 10 best combat aircraft in the world.
The best combat aircraft in the world
10th place: Northrop F-5 fighter
403 active aircraft
The F-5 fighter family is one of the few examples of American combat aircraft that have achieved great success, especially outside the United States. The machine is designed as a light fighter or fighter-bomber. Many US-friendly countries received the F-5A/B Freedom Fighter, and then the improved F-5E/F Tiger II. The first flight of the prototype took place on July 30, 1959. By 1987, 2,246 production cars had been produced.
F-5 Tiger II fighter
Currently, the largest user is South Korea, which has 156 F-5E aircraft. In Europe, the Swiss Air Force still uses 18 F-5E Tiger II – at the airshow, their Partrouille Suisse aerobatic team also amazes the public with its six F-5Es painted in red and white. Partrouille Suisse is the only aerobatic group in Western Europe that has made a bet on a supersonic high–speed operational aircraft.
Regarding the further development of the F-5, the authors of the report draw attention to Iran, where there are models of "Azarakhsh", "Saege" and "Kausar" – three national derivatives of the F-5A, delivered to the Shah's government in the 60s. "Kowsar" was presented to the public in the summer of 2018 as Iran's own development. Outwardly, it looks like the usual F-5, but, allegedly, it has modern avionics and a new radar ( read more about IRI combat aircraft here ).
The F-5 is actively used in Botswana (11 units), Brazil (42), Chile (10), Honduras (4), Iran (35), Kenya (17), Mexico (3), Morocco (22), South Korea (156), Switzerland (18), Taiwan (27), Thailand (30), Tunisia (11), Venezuela (6) and Yemen (11).
9th place: Su-25
480 active aircraft
The Sukhoi Su-25 was developed in the late 60s as a classic combat aircraft. He first took to the air on February 22, 1975. More than 1000 copies have been built, many of which have been exported. In addition to Russia (200 aircraft), numerous air forces in Africa, Eastern Europe and Asia are betting on the Su-25, which received the name Frogfoot according to the NATO classification. In addition, Peru owns two operational Su-25s.
Su-25 attack aircraft
It is noted that in Russia, as in other countries, there is a desire to bring the aircraft in line with future requirements through continuous modernization. The current version is Su-25M3. However, how many of the samples preserved all over the world are really ready for flight remains an open question for the authors of the rating. The Su-25 has been involved in the war in Ukraine on both sides since February 2022. Since 2010, Ukrainians have been conducting their own modernization program (Su-25M1), which includes, among other things, improving avionics and strengthening the airframe.
In Russia, the Su-25 is known by the nickname "Rook". In the design of the attack aircraft, special attention is paid to strength. The windshield is made of armored glass, the crew cabin is surrounded by welded titanium plating up to 24 mm thick. The robust chassis allows the Su-25 to use poorly prepared runways, the tanks in the fuselage and wings are self-sealing. If necessary, two aircraft engines can also run on gasoline and diesel fuel. In addition, a wide arsenal of weapons is available for the Su-25 attack aircraft.
8th place: Eurofighter Typhoon
526 active aircraft
Initially, the Eurofighter was developed as a European response to the best Warsaw Pact combat aircraft, the MiG-29 and Su-27. With the fall of the Iron Curtain, the project was suspended for several years – at that time, an expensive and maneuverable fighter was not needed to ensure air superiority.
Multi-purpose Eurofighter Typhoon
However, in the end, the governments of the countries participating in the project, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain, decided to continue developing the aircraft and assign a new military role to Eurofighter. The fighter, which first took off in 1994, has been called "Typhoon" since 1997 and is now a real multi-purpose combat aircraft capable of performing a variety of roles.
Serial production began in 2003, the first combat vehicles entered service in 2006. The global marketing started by Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH is carried out primarily in the Persian Gulf countries. Here, the Eurofighter is in service with the Saudi Arabian Air Force (72 vehicles) and Oman (12). They also include Kuwait, which received 6 of the 28 Typhoons currently ordered, and Qatar with 4 of the 24 ordered.
In Europe, the Eurofighter Typhoon is in service with the British Air Force (119), Germany (138) and Italy (92). Spain has ordered 20 fighters in addition to its 68 Eurofighters. Austria uses 15 Eurofighter fighters of the first tranche.
7th place: F-35Lightning II
544 active aircraft
The fifth-generation F-35 stealth fighter-bomber is among the top ten most used fighters in the world only since 2022. The aircraft is designed to replace the F-16 and other older models and is currently available in three versions: F-35A (with conventional takeoff and landing), F-35B (with vertical takeoff and landing) and F-35C (version for aircraft carriers).
Fighter aircraft of the US Armed Forces F-35Lightning II
According to the authors of the report, despite the ongoing problems "with teething," the stealth aircraft from Lockheed Martin is sailing on a wave of success. Currently, slightly less than 800 F-35s are in service worldwide, including about 180 as training aircraft. The list of orders is longer than ever. Initial orders come not only from Germany (35 cars were ordered), but also from the Czech Republic (24), Canada (88), Belgium (34), Switzerland (36), Finland (64), as well as from other countries.
Stealth combat aircraft are present in the Air Forces of Australia (63), Japan (27), South Korea (38), the Netherlands (18), Italy (16), Israel (32), Norway (24) and the United Kingdom (26). To date, the largest user is the United States: there are more than 300 active Lightning II aircraft in the US Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps. ( also related )
6th place: Chengdu J-7 / F-7
798 active aircraft
In the 60s, China began producing copies of the Soviet MiG-21 fighter. The combat aircraft, designated J-7, first took to the air on January 17, 1966 and was manufactured in numerous versions. Even more than 50 years later, the Chinese Air Force continues to rely on a durable old fighter: at the end of 2022, 378 J-7 aircraft were in service. To these are added another 30 aircraft operated by the Chinese Navy.
PLA J-7 combat aircraft
China also exported Chengdu J-7 to other countries under the designation F-7. Production ended only in May 2013, when the last aircraft were transferred to Bangladesh. The advantages of the aircraft – especially for the armed forces of poor countries – are obvious: it is inexpensive and not particularly difficult from a technical point of view, but at the same time it has sufficient combat power and is relatively easy to maintain. More than 2,400 copies of the J-7 and F-7 were built, of which 798 are currently still active.
The largest users, besides China, are Pakistan with 135 vehicles (plus five FT-7 training aircraft) and North Korea with 120 aircraft (as of early 2023).
5th place: MiG-29
822 active aircraft
Since the late phase of the Cold War, the MiG-29 fighter is still widely used in 2023. Since the first flight on October 6, 1977, more than 1,600 of this combat aircraft have been produced. Currently, the largest user is Russia, with about 250 machines.
MiG-29 fighter
Until 2004, Germany also remained home to 24 MiG-29s. The machines have been flying in the National People's Army of the GDR in Preshen since 1988. Later, after the disbandment of the East German Armed Forces, they were transferred to the Bundeswehr Air Force.
According to the report, the latest version of the fighter, which was once feared in NATO, has the designation MiG-29M. In the Russian Armed Forces, this aircraft is called the MiG-35. In addition to the more powerful RD-33K engines manufactured by Klimov, the newest representative of the MiG-29 family is equipped with a flight control system with four-fold redundancy, as well as three full-color multifunction displays in the cockpit. In addition, the MiG-35 is equipped with a new onboard radar with AFAR.
Currently, the Russian Air Force has eight MiG-35s in service, two of which are prototypes. It is reported that Russia plans to replace its outdated MiG-29 variants with new MiG-35s in the medium term. At the beginning of 2023, the Russian government announced the resumption of serial production of this model.
MiG-29s are still in use in about 22 countries, including India, Belarus, Bulgaria, Sudan, Egypt and Iran. In NATO, MiG-29s are still represented by Bulgaria and Poland. Slovakia donated its MiG-29s to Ukraine in early 2023. These combat aircraft are also flown by the Serbian Air Force.
4th place: F/A-18 Hornet/Super Hornet
828 active aircraft
The prototype of the F/A-18 combat aircraft made its first flight on November 18, 1978. The second generation F/A-18E/F "Super Hornet" has been flying since 1995. Most of the active today (Super) "Hornets", about 550 pieces, serve in the US Navy and Marine Corps. Other users include Australia (24 F/A-18F and 12 EA-18G), Finland (55 F/A-18C/D), Canada (63 F/A-18C/D), Kuwait (34 F/A-18C/D, F/A-18E/ F), Malaysia (8 F/A-18D), Switzerland (25 F/A-18C/D) and Spain (72 F/A-18C/D).
F/A-18 Super Hornet
The F-18 two-seat fighter was developed by Northrop and adapted from the very beginning for use on aircraft carriers. As a standard US Navy fighter, it replaced the outdated Vought A-7 Corsair II and McDonnell F-4 Phantom II models. In addition, it has become a long-awaited addition to the larger F-14 Tomcat fighter.
Using the previous YF-17 project, Northrop previously competed with the F-16 from General Dynamics in a competition held by the US Air Force, and lost. But instead of burying the project, Northrop teamed up with McDonnell Douglas. Created as a result of this cooperation, the F/A-18 made a career in the navy. As of 2000, only the F/A-18E/F and the EA-18G Growler version of the electronic warfare aircraft were built.
At the beginning of 2023, the manufacturer Boeing announced the cessation of production of the Super Hornet. The year 2025 is considered to be the final one, after more than 2,000 produced "Hornets", "Super Hornets" and EA-18G Growlers and a 40-year production period. Under the contract with the US Navy, Boeing has not yet delivered 76 aircraft. The transfer of the last of them is scheduled for 2025.
3rd place: F-15 Eagle
961 operational aircraft.
Designed as a high-performance interceptor, the F-15 Eagle from Boeing was officially adopted by the US Air Force on November 14, 1974. As a result, only 27 months passed between the first flight on July 27, 1972 and the commissioning of the combat aircraft. Later, exports to Japan and Saudi Arabia followed.
F-15 Eagle fighter-bomber
The program received an additional boost with the appearance of the upgraded F-15E, which first took to the air at the end of 1986. In the following years, Singapore and South Korea also chose the Eagles. They were joined by orders from Israel (F-15I), South Korea (F-15K), and at the end of 2016 from Qatar (F-15QA).
The two-seat F-15E "Strike Eagle" and its more modern derivatives have significantly expanded the range of applications of the model. If until now the aircraft has performed mainly its original role of an interceptor, then the Strike Eagle can also be equipped with extensive air-to-ground weapons. The authors of the report note the high payload capacity of the F-15E, which is capable of carrying more than 11,000 kg of weapons.
Although the Eagle made its first flight of the F-15 more than 50 years ago from Edwards Air Base, experts believe that the end of the model is still ahead: the new F-15EX Eagle II, as a changing of the guard, is already on the way.
2nd place: Su-27 / Su-30
1060 active aircraft.
Although the Su-27 (according to the NATO classification "Flanker" / Flanker) is larger and more complex than the MiG-29, the interceptor surpassed the smaller aircraft in the number of active aircraft. At the same time, a large share of them are the multi-purpose version of the Su-30, as well as machines manufactured in China .
Su-30 fighters of the Russian Navy
For the first time, the T-10-1 prototype took to the air on May 20, 1977. Only after a major overhaul of the structure, this sample became successful. The almost serial T-10-S made its first flight on April 20, 1981.
According to the authors of the rating, the Su-27 is similar to its counterpart, the Boeing F-15 Eagle, in several ways. Of similar size and also with a double tail, the "Flankers" also began their career as air superiority fighters. In subsequent years, in the guise of a two-seat Su-30, the aircraft also turned into a multi-purpose fighter and fighter-bomber. To date, it is still the basis of the Russian Air Force, in which 385 copies of the Su-27, Su-30, and Su-35 "Super Flanker" serve.
In the West, the Su-27 became famous largely thanks to the "Pugachev's Cobra" – a spectacular aerial maneuver, first demonstrated by test pilot Viktor Pugachev at the Paris Air Show in 1989. This aerobatic figure impressively emphasized the special aerodynamics of the Su-27. Other users of the model are the Air Forces of Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Algeria, Ethiopia and Indonesia.
1st place: F-16 Fighting Falcon
2,184 active aircraft
The single-seat F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter produced by Lockheed Martin makes up about 15% of the world fleet of vehicles of this class. This makes the model, which first took to the air on February 2, 1974, the undisputed leader of the top 10 best combat aircraft in the world compiled by the authors.
Leader of the F-16 Fighting Falcon rating
Thanks to large orders from the USA and Europe, the F-16, originally developed by General Dynamics, achieved high performance at an early stage. The relatively low initial price made them interesting even for small countries. As a result, the F-16 quickly turned into a new standard NATO combat aircraft.
Numerous improvements and an ongoing modernization program have ensured that even today the combat-ready Falcon is not part of the old hardware. Serial production has been underway since 1976. The latest version is the F–16V Block 70/72, which is manufactured in Greenville. As a used aircraft, the F-16 is also in high demand.
Currently, the largest users of the F-16 are the US Armed Forces (775). They are followed by Israel (175), Turkey (157), Egypt (168), South Korea (118) and Greece (114). In total, more than 4,500 copies were built or ordered.
According to the materials of the resource flugrevue.de
