Fighter aircraft

A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets by dropping bombs. Fighters are small, fast, and maneuverable. Many fighters have secondary ground-attack capabilities, and some are dual-roled as fighter-bombers; the term "fighter" is also sometimes used colloquially for dedicated ground-attack aircraft. Fighter aircraft are the primary means by which armed forces gain air superiority over their opponents in battle. Since at least World War II, achieving and maintaining air superiority has been a key component of victory in warfare, particularly conventional warfare between regular armies (as opposed to guerrilla warfare). The purchase, training and maintenance of a fighter fleet represent a very substantial proportion of defense budgets for modern militaries. Contents [hide] 1 Terminology 2 Introduction 3 Piston engine fighters 3.1 World War I 3.1.1 Notable aircraft of the WWI period 3.2 Interwar period (1919-1938) 3.2.1 Notable aircraft of the interwar period 3.3 World War II 3.3.1 European theater (Western Front) 3.3.2 European theater (Eastern Front) 3.3.3 Pacific theatre 3.3.4 Technological innovations 3.3.5 Notable World War II piston-engine fighters 3.4 Post-World War II period 3.4.1 Notable post-World War II piston-engine and piston-jet-powered fighters 4 Rocket-powered fighters 5 Jet-powered fighters 5.1 First generation subsonic jet fighters (mid-1940s to mid-1950s) 5.1.1 Notable first generation jet fighter aircraft 5.2 Second generation jet fighters (mid-1950s to early 1960s) 5.2.1 Notable second generation jet fighter aircraft 5.3 Third generation jet fighters (early 1960s to circa 1970) 5.3.1 Notable third generation jet fighter aircraft 5.4 Fourth generation jet fighters (circa 1970 to mid-1990s) 5.4.1 Notable fourth generation jet fighter aircraft 5.5 4.5th generation jet fighters (1990s to the present) 5.5.1 Notable 4.5th generation jet fighters 5.5.2 In development 5.6 Fifth generation jet fighters (2005 to the present) 5.6.1 In service 5.6.2 In development 5.6.3 Technology demonstrators 6 See also 7 References 8 External links [edit] Terminology The word "fighter" did not become the official English term for such aircraft until after World War I. In Great Britain's Royal Flying Corps – later the Royal Air Force – these aircraft continued to be called "scouts" into the early 1920s. The U.S. Army called their fighters "pursuit" aircraft (reflected by their designation in the "P" series) from 1916 until the late 1940s. In the French and German languages the term used (and still in use) literally means "hunter". This has been followed in most other languages, an exception being Russian, in which the fighter is called "истребитель" (pronounced "istrebitel"), meaning "exterminator". Although the term "fighter" technically refers to aircraft designed to shoot down other aircraft, such designs are often also useful as multirole fighter-bombers and sometimes lighter, fighter-sized tactical ground-attack aircraft. For example, in WWII the US Navy would later favor fighters over dedicated dive bombers, and the P-47 Thunderbolt would be favored for ground attack. The controversial F-111 would be employed largely only as a strike bomber as the fighter variant was abandoned. Bombers generally refer to long-range strategic or theater bombing roles. This blurring follows the use of fighters from their earliest days for "attack" or "strike" operations against enemy troops, field positions, vehicles, and facilities by means of strafing or dropping of bombs or incendiaries. Some of the most expensive fighters such as the F-14 Tomcat and F-15 Eagle were employed as all-weather interceptors as well as air superiority combat aircraft, only developing air-to-ground roles late in their careers. Multirole fighter-bombers such as the F/A-18 Hornet are often less expensive and tasked (and in this case, given an F/A designation) with ground attack as part of a "high-low mix", or in the case of the Super Hornet, replacing a range of specialized aircraft types.