From the first biplanes to fifth-generation stealth fighters, military aircraft have transformed the battlefield. Explore fighter jets, bombers, transport planes, and the engineering decisions that determine which platforms dominate the skies.
Military aircraft have defined the outcome of conflicts since World War I, when the first biplanes took to the skies over the Western Front. Today, fifth-generation stealth fighters like the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II represent the most advanced flying machines ever built, aircraft that can detect and engage targets before they even appear on an enemy's radar screen.
Our aircraft coverage examines fighters, bombers, transport planes, helicopters, and unmanned aerial vehicles from every era and every nation. Whether it is the engineering behind the A-10 Warthog's titanium armor, the classified tactics that give the F-22 its unmatched kill ratio, or the economics driving the global competition between the F-35 and Gripen, we focus on what these machines can actually do, not just what the brochures promise.
From the P-51 Mustang and Spitfire to the B-2 Spirit and Su-57 Felon, explore the full spectrum of military aviation with in-depth analysis built for enthusiasts who want to understand the engineering, the tactics, and the history behind the world's most formidable aircraft.
Showing 12 of 296 articles
Hunting a submarine from 30,000 feet sounds impossible. The P-8 Poseidon does it every day, using sonobuoys, radar, and classified sensor fusion that turns the ocean into a transparent map.
In 19 hours, Marine helicopters flew 682 sorties and lifted 7,000 people off rooftops as North Vietnamese tanks closed in. Operation Frequent Wind was the largest helicopter evacuation in history, and it nearly didn't happen.
20 best flight sim gear picks from $30 joysticks to $700 HOTAS setups. Sticks, throttles, rudder pedals, head tracking, VR, and cockpit panels.
Only six pilots have ever sat in a B-21 Raider cockpit. Everything they saw is classified. Northrop Grumman's next-generation stealth bomber made its first flight in November 2023 and has been in flight testing at Edwards Air Force Base since, making it the most secretive aircraft program in a generation. At roughly $700 million per aircraft, the Raider is designed to penetrate the most advanced air defenses on earth and deliver nuclear or conventional weapons to any target, anywhere. Here is what we know about the bomber the Air Force calls its most important acquisition.
The MiG-31 was designed to catch the SR-71 Blackbird. It is still the fastest fighter in any air force. The Foxhound's Zaslon phased-array radar, the first ever installed in a fighter, can track 10 targets and engage 4 simultaneously at ranges exceeding 200 miles. Here is why Russia still flies a 1980s interceptor, and why the MiG-31BM carrying a Kinzhal hypersonic missile has changed what the aircraft means to modern warfare.
The C-17 Globemaster III can carry a 70-ton M1 Abrams tank, fly it 2,400 nautical miles, and land on an unpaved runway shorter than most regional airports. No other aircraft on earth can do all three. Here is how Boeing built the most versatile strategic airlifter ever to fly, and why nothing has replaced it.
22 best diecast military models from $25 desk pieces to $170 collector-grade aircraft and tanks. Hobby Master, Corgi, Forces of Valor, and more.
The AC-130J Ghostrider carries a 105mm howitzer, a 30mm chain gun, Hellfire missiles, and precision bombs inside a cargo plane, then flies in a continuous banking turn at 12,000 feet while placing every round inside a 10-meter circle. Here's how the fire control system makes that possible.
The Navy's most important drone won't fire a single weapon. The MQ-25A Stingray is a carrier-based unmanned tanker that delivers 15,000 pounds of fuel at 500 nautical miles, freeing up F/A-18s from tanking duty and extending the carrier air wing's strike range by 300-400 miles.
20 military gifts under $25. Books, models, puzzles, patches, and gear that military enthusiasts actually want.
20 best beginner model kits from snap-fit to starter sets with paint. Aircraft, tanks, and ships for first-time builders.
An F-22 Raptor has the radar signature of a marble. A B-52 has the radar signature of a barn. The difference comes down to five engineering disciplines: shaping, materials, inlet masking, exhaust design, and the limits of 1970s computing power that explain why the F-117 looks nothing like the B-2.
The latest aircraft articles delivered to your inbox.
