Military Aircraft

Back to Amazing Airplanes

This page describes different military aircraft. Military aircraft can be divided into aircraft that are land based and aircraft that are carrier based. These categories can be further subdivided into the functions they perform. There are bombers, fighters, attack, cargo, tanker, trainer, reconnaissance, surveillance, radar, and rescue. Military aircraft are operated by men and women who belong to the Navy services. Naval aviation began in the United States at the end of World War I and was perfected in World Was II with carrier operations. Since 1962 planes have been categorized by the following symbols.

Fighter aircraft played a very important role in our country's defense. A fighter aircraft is an airplane that is used to destroy the opponents aircraft, protects bombers and shoots missiles at small objects. Fighter aircraft are equipped with radar which allows a target to be detected. The radar screen allows the pilot to program the aircraft missiles and shoots them with great accuracy at the enemy .The Air Force and Navy have many fighter aircraft which are used every day to protect our military people and equipment. Some of the most famous fighter aircraft are the F- 14, F-16 , F-18 and most recently, the F-22 the aircraft. Fighter aircraft all start with the letter F. Listed below are their specifications.

F-14

Made by Grumman, Navy aircraft

Nick named the TOMCAT

Manufactured starting 1969 and has been up graded each year

Cruising speed is 633 mph, max seed is mach 2.4

Max range 50,000 ft.

Rate of climb 30,000 ft. per min.

F-16

Made by General Dynamic, used by Airforce and Navy

Called the Fighting Falcon

Manufactured in 1975

Max speed over mach 2

Max ceiling 50,000 ft.

Distance 2,415 miles

Used by many NATO countries. Over 4,000 built to date

Made by McDonnell Douglas, used by the Navy

Called the Hornet

First manufactured in 1976

Max speed 1,190 MPH

Max ceiling 50,000 ft

Cruising speed 660 MPH

Approx. 1039 aircraft built to date

Made by Lockheed Martin, prototype aircraft in 1996

Air force next generation fighter, known as Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF)

Ceiling 50,000 ft

Max speed mach 1.7

Duel tail wings

Cargo planes have become very important in providing support to ground forces. They are categorized as either heavy or light transport aircraft. Today’s military forces rely heavily upon supplies to equip them in battle. In peacetime, troops stationed in other countries are supported by transports bridging food and clothing. Heavy transports are able to move large equipment and people over great distances for attack or defense. Military transports are designed to land on short runways. Transports sit very close to the ground so that tanks and trucks can move very easily up their loading ramps. Transports also are required to fly very low such as 100 to 200 ft. so that they are able to drop cargo if needed out the rear of the plane by parachute. Light transports are aircraft that can move small loads and people and come in many different sizes. All transports start with the letter "C". Listed below are their important specifications.

Famous Cargo Aircraft

Made by Lockheed and called the Galaxy

First produced in 1968

Max cargo weight 415,000 lbs.

Rage 6,529 miles with 112,600 lbs. pay load

Max speed 517 mph

Ceiling 25,000 ft.

C-130

Made by Lockheed

First produced in 1961

Can carry 100,000 lbs. of cargo

Turbo prop

Max speed 386 MPH

Range 5,135 miles

Primarily used to transport freight and troops

Made by Lockheed

First produced in 1967

Max cargo 200,000 lbs.

Max speed 569 MPH

Range 3,200 miles

Approx. 289 were produced

In 1978 all C-141's were upgraded

The use of bombers as military aircraft became wide spread during World War II. Bombers differ from fighter aircraft in that a bomber is capable of flying over great distances carrying the bombs to enemy home lands. "Bombers are used in strategic or tactical missions. A strategic mission is usually a medium or long range flight intended to strike an enemy at the source of their military power. A tactical mission involves missions at a shorter distance from a base to support friendly ground forces."^xiii Bombers hold various bombs on the bottom of the plane. Some bombers have bombs that are stored internally while others have the bombs mounted externally on the wings. Because bombers fly at slow speeds, they are usually seen with fighter aircraft to provide protection from the enemy. The bombs that are used can be smart bombs which when fired can seek a target using their guidance systems or dumb bombs witch are just dropped down in place. Other types of bombs include chemical and others that start fires. Bombers are very strong planes because they have to carry heavy bombs. Bombers are used by the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. There are many bombers that have been produced since World War II and they are referenced with the model number starting with the letter "B" for bomber. Listed below are some of the famous bombers that were used in military missions.

Made by Boeing

Called the Strato Fortress

Produced in 1954- still in use today

Total produced 744

Max speed 595 MPH

Range 10,000 miles

Ceiling 55,000 feet

Lift off weight 488,000 lbs.

Made by General Dynamics

Produced in 1960

First supersonic bomber

Max Speed 1000 MPH

Range 2000 miles

Taken out of service in 1970

Made by Rockwell International

First flight was 1974

100 aircraft produced

Max speed 1,320 MPH

Ceiling 50,000 feet

Range 6100 miles

Made by Northrop Grumman

Known as the stealth bomber

Ceiling 50 ,000 feet

Range 7,595 miles

Max bomb load is 40,000 lbs.

Currently 21 are in use

The airplanes first military use was to scout for the army and to this day this role has played an important role in the Air Force. Reconnaissance aircraft are important because they identify targets for both attack aircraft and ground troops. To avoid being shot down because these type aircraft are usually slow, they are seen with fighter aircraft. They have very large wings that span almost twice as long as regular aircraft. Because of these wings, they are able to go up to very high altitudes which allow them to look down at the enemy. These planes have cameras that can take pictures pointing forward, to the side and facing down. Older aircraft usually used black and white film where today's aircraft can send the pictures instantly down to the our troops for them to see on a computer monitor . This is called down linking the information. In the 1950's the most famous reconnaissance plane was the U-2 which lead to the more famous SR-71 Blackbird. Listed below are their specifications

Made by Lockheed

Max speed 800 MPH

Max Altitude 75,000 feet

Range 6000 miles

Wing Span was 103 ft

Made by Lockheed

Called the Blackbird

Max Speed above Mach 3

Ceiling is 100,000 ft

Relies on Astro-Inertial Navigation system

Tanker Aircraft

The tanker has become very important starting in the 1950s. Tankers both large and small are used daily around the world and extend the range of aircraft without the need for an landing. Up until 1950, the United States relied on large bombers to cover great distances. The United States Air Force uses a technique known as "the flying boom" because the Boeing KC-135 tanker is equipped with a telescoping tube beneath the rear fuselage. Refueling begins with the boom being extended. The pilot of the aircraft receiving the fuel flies straight as the boom is controlled from the tanker by a telescoping tube. Once it is locked in place gasoline goes into the aircraft. The United States Navy and Marines use the Lockheed KC-130 which uses a rubber hose unwound from the plane and is lowered to the aircraft. The advantage to this method is that two planes can be refueled at one time. This process requires the receiving aircraft to drive up to make contact with a basket mounted at the end of the hose. This procedure is more difficult than the telescope method. Listed below are their specifications

Speed - 357 mph

Range - 3,000 miles

Fuel - l35 pounds

Crew - 7

Called the Strato Tanker

Manufactured in 1956, 73 were delivered

Speed - 610 mph

Range - 6,835 miles

Ceiling - 35,000

Fuel - 31,200 gallons

Speed - 610 mph

Range - 11,500 miles

Ceiling - 33,400 ft.

Fuel - 348,975 lbs.