Fighter aircraft
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Fighter aircraft are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of th
An F-16 Fighting Falcon (left), P-51D Mustang (bottom), F-86 Sabre (top), and F-22 Raptor (right) represent four generations of American fighters.
Airco DH.2 "pusher" scout
The USAF Lockheed Martin F-35A
SPAD S.A.2, with gunner in "basket" up front
Grumman F-14 Tomcat
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The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is an American carrier-capable supersonic, twin-engine, tandem two-seat, twin-tail, all-weather-capable variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the U
A U.S. Navy F-14D conducts a mission over the Persian Gulf region in 2005
The F-111B was designed to fulfill the carrier-based interceptor role, but had weight and performance problems, and was not suited to the types of aerial combat that were predominant over Vietnam.
Grumman's VFX entry was designed around the TF30 engine, AWG-9 radar and AIM-54 missile intended for the F-111B; this eventually became the F-14A.
VFA-143 "Pukin Dogs" F-14B (in the foreground) and F/A-18E Super Hornet in 2005