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it could be argued that the history of
aviation spans thousands of years but in
the last generation alone mankind has
developed technology that's allowed
humanity to not only take flight but to
accomplish powerful feats of aerodynamic
speed distance and i'ts we've also built
advanced weapons both manned and
unmanned that have changed the scope of
warfare forever this is a list of the
top 10 fighters to transform the aerial
battle space for better or for worse
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10 SEO 27 flanker the Sukhoi su-27
flanker introduced a true modern fighter
for the Soviet Union it was developed in
response to the f-15 Eagle during the
Cold War and would become one of the
most impressive fighter jets of the 20th
century the combination of a a11 Archer
missiles and helmet-mounted sight system
introduced a true close in threat to
Western fighters the su-27 might even
have an edge over the f-15 in a dogfight
if the Eagles superior avionics let it
get that close but I'll let you guys
debate that the commies built for air
superiority the su-27 is the flexibility
for interceptor and ground attack
missions and it remains in service as a
multi-role fighter to this day
number nine f-86 saber the f-86 saber
was the first swept-wing aircraft in the
u.s. fighter inventory it's scored
countless air-to-air kills against
Soviet built aircraft during the Korean
War namely the m15 in 1948 and
f-86a
set a world speed record of 570 miles
per hour model upgrades would go on to
beat that record when in f-86d flew 698
miles per hour in 1952 and then at 750
miles per hour in 1953 while the united
states would discontinue production of
the f-86 in 1956 it still boasts the
legacy of defeating its enemy with a
victory ratio of 10 to 1 over the Korean
Peninsula where nearly 800 mig-15s were
destroyed at the cost of fewer than 80
Sabres
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number eight Fokker dr1 the Fokker dr1
is infamous for its missions at the
hands of German World War one ace Baron
Manfred von Richtofen otherwise known as
the Red Baron in fact it was the very
plane he was killed in after his 80th
and final victory the triplane was built
to outmaneuver Great Britain's Sopwith
tripling and it did well relatively slow
with a maximum speed of 115 miles per
hour at sea level it could according to
the Red Baron himself maneuver like a
double more impressive perhaps were it's
thick cantilever wings which needed no
struts or bracing liners
unlike most other planes during the war
while later variants of the Fokker would
surpass the Red Baron's dry Decker or
triplane V Fokker dr1 earned its
reputation paving the way for aerial
dogfights
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number seven f4 phantom the f4 phantom
made this list not only because it was
one of the most versatile players ever
built but also because of its badass
wild weasel role during the Vietnam War
the Phantom was specifically designed to
go looking for trouble flying low and
slow to light up enemies Sam's
surface-to-air missile sites early
models of the f4 didn't even have an
internal gun it was built for beyond
visual range weapons carrying everything
from the aim-9 sidewinder to nuclear
weapons the phantom assured in modern
air combat as a true multi-role fighter
and during its time and service the f4
established 16 speed altitude and time
to climb records cementing its place in
aviation history
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number six Supermarine Spitfire with the
BF 109 the p-51 Mustang and the p-38
lightning in the skies it can be hard to
choose a favorite plane from world war
ii but we're giving the glory to the
Supermarine Spitfire the British icon
was built with an advanced all-metal
airframe making it fast and maneuverable
it was also full of firepower and its
role in the Battle of Britain against
the German Luftwaffe gave the Allies a
crucial victory when they needed it most
during the d-day invasion a Spitfire
mark 9 carried 20 millimeter cannons and
50 caliber machine guns carrying out
critical ground attack missions and even
injuring General Erwin Rommel the desert
fox himself
number four f-117 nighthawk well stealth
technology has been explored since World
War two the f-117 Nighthawk gets credit
for bringing true stealth capabilities
to combat shrouded in secrecy during its
development the f-117 was designed to
attack high-value targets without being
detected by enemy radar in 1981 it
became the world's first operational
stealth aircraft in 1999 the u.s. lost
its edge when an f-117 was shot down in
Yugoslavia the details about the event
are still classified but it's known that
the aircraft landed relatively intact
potentially allowing Russia and China to
enter the stealth technology game the
f-117 saw combat during multiple
operations over two decades and it paved
the way for the fifth-generation stealth
fighters we fly today number-4 fa-18
Hornet the f-18 Hornet was the first
tactical aircraft designed to carry out
both air-to-air and air-to-ground
missions making it a versatile fighter
for both naval aircraft carrier duty and
Marine Corps combat operations the
Hornet could switch roles easily a feat
and perform successfully during the
Persian Gulf War when it shut down two
iraqi MIG 21s in fighter mode and then
took out a ground target in attack mode
during the mission the Hornet is not
only the nation's first official strike
fighter it's proven to be one of the
most reliable as well operating as a
fighter escort complete air defense and
providing both close and deep air
support
number three mq-1 predators the mq-1
predator brought true combat drones to
reality and mark the beginning of the
end of man-powered aerial combat see I
said it
come at me fly boys with its first
Hellfire kill in November 2002 the
predator changed war fighting forever
the predator was operated remotely by a
pilot and one or two sensor operators it
was a multi mission medium-altitude
long-endurance asset that primarily
operated as an is our platform but its
armament capabilities offered the
ability to strike targets as needed the
US Air Force officially retired the
predator on March 9th 2018 to give way
to its super-sized follow-up the mq-9
Reaper which son of the Hellfire
missiles the mq-1 and raised it some Jay
dams in the gbu-12
number two f15 Eagle the f-15 Eagle
boasts an undefeated record in
air-to-air combat with models still in
use today
despite the design name from the 1970
it's longevity can be attributed to its
unprecedented acceleration
groundbreaking maneuverability and
impressive weapons capabilities it's
high thrust-to-weight ratio and low wing
loading allow the Eagle to turn tightly
without losing airspeed well it's top
speed above Mach 2.5 made it the first
US fighter capable of vertical
acceleration its avionics package and
armament specs notably including the
aim-120 D Amram radar guided missile
combined with flight performance defined
air superiority and it has yet to meet
an enemy capable of bringing it down
number one after 22 rapper
the f-22 Raptor is the most powerful air
dominance fighter in the world now in
the universe considered the first
fifth-generation fighter in the u.s. in
to join the vector boasts unprecedented
attack controllers integrated avionics
and battlespace awareness as well as
stealth technologies that allow it to
protect not only itself but other assets
in air-to-air configuration the Raptor
carries six aim-120 amraam and 2 aim-9
Sidewinders well in air-to-ground mode
it can carry two gbu 32 J dams while
bringing along two am rams and two
Sidewinders just protects the F
twenty-twos powerful engine and sleek
aerodynamic design allow it to cruise at
supersonic speeds without using
afterburner and it's flight controls of
maneuverability are unmatched by any
other aircraft Evelyn
if that list doesn't make you want to
cross into the wild blue yonder then
damn it I don't know what well leave a
comment and let me know