Interim report released on loss of F-35B on HMS Queen Elizabeth
An interim report into the loss of UK F-35B Lightning II ZM152 ‘018’ on HMS Queen Elizabeth (R08) on November 17, 2021, was published by the UK Ministry of Defence on September 8
Is Iran going to buy Su-35SE fighters from Russia?
Having been heavily restricted by international sanctions, Iran has struggled to source replacements for its ageing fighter fleets in recent times, but recent comments have indicated that the nation is currently plotting a move to buy Sukhoi Su-35SE Flanker-E multi-role fighters from Russia
Qatar’s first Eurofighter Typhoons arrive in-country
Qatar has formally received its first four Eurofighter Typhoons after BAE Systems delivered the initial batch of the multi-role fighter to the country in late August
Israel strikes again in latest Gaza operation
The arrest of leading Islamic terrorist, Bassem Saadi, by Israeli troops in the West Bank city of Jenin on August 1 led to fighting between Israel and the militant group of jihadis in Gaza
Is Slovakia’s recently retired MiG-29 fleet destined for Ukraine?
Having recently bid farewell to its iconic fleet of MiG-29AS/UBS Fulcrum fighters after more than 30 years of operational service, Slovakia is now discussing how best to use the 11 decommissioned aircraft with its allies and a move to transfer them to Ukraine is definitely on the table
RuASF displays latest Su-57s at ARMY-2022
Sukhoi Su-57 (Bort No ‘52 Red’, T-50S-4 serial 52202) was present on static display at Kubinka AB, near Moscow, during the International Military-Technical Forum ‘ARMY-2022’, which was held by the Russian MOD from August 15-21
Russian MOD inks deal for more Fullbacks
The Russian MOD has inked a deal with the United Aircraft Corporation – a subsidiary of Russia’s Rostec State Corporation – for the delivery of more Sukhoi Su-34 Fullback fighter-bombers to frontline units
Russia moves to increase Su-57 serial production
The United Aircraft Corporation is constructing a number of new facilities at its Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Plant in far-eastern Russia in a bid to build up capacity and allow the firm to increase serial production of the Sukhoi Su-57 fifth-generation multi-role stealth fighter
First brand-new F-35A delivered to 461st FLTS
The USAF's 412th Test Wing announced on August 15 that the first of six brand-new F-35A Lightning IIs has been delivered to Edwards Air Force Base, California
Qatar receives first Eurofighter Typhoon during UK ceremony
The first Eurofighter Typhoon for the Qatar Emiri Air Force (QEAF) was formally handed over during a formal roll-out ceremony at BAE Systems’ facility in Warton, Lancashire, on August 15
Fighter aircraft were not the first heavier-than-air military aircraft. During the First World War bi-planes with a pilot and a crew member would carry out. Guns were soon added to these aircraft and the fighters were born; the term dogfight became synonymous with the new form of aerial combat. These aircraft would also crudely drop bombs with a crew member simply throwing the bombs out of the aircraft. After the First World War, fighter development led to the single wing, enclosed cockpit, propeller powered aircraft such as the RAF Hawker Hurricane, Luftwaffe Messerschmitt Bf 109 and the United States Army Airforce North American Aviation P-51 Mustang. After the war, the RAF Gloster Meteor was the RAF’s first operational jet fighter and it was rapidly joined by fast jets from France, Russia and the USA.
Today, the roles of military fast jets have hardly changed, from intercepting other fast jets fighters or bombers, to maintaining air superiority, they are bombing air defences and photographing bombed sites for battle damage assessment as well as escorting slower, more vulnerable aircraft.
Different Types of Fighter Planes
From the first aerial reconnaissance aircraft, the Wright brothers military flyer, or Model A, sold to the US military in 1909, it took 45 years until the United States Airforce’s North American F-100 Super Sabre became the world’s first operational supersonic fighter in 1954. There has been a huge amount of technological development between the Super Sabre and the world’s first operational fifth generation fighter, the United States Marine Corp’s Lockheed Martin F-35B/C Lightning II, which entered service in 2015. All fixed wing aircraft, since the advent of jet fighters in World War Two, have been a variety of designs to meet the military’s changing needs. Jet engines were in development before World War Two, but it was only near the end of that war that the first operational fast jet fighter, the Messerschmitt Me 262, took to the skies.
Fighters steadily developed to fly higher and faster, carry more payloads, both missiles and bombs, and became supersonic. The need for greater speed saw the delta wing shape for supersonic flight, air-to-air missiles were used in the Korean War for the first time, and it was only later that fighters were equipped with radar, allowing for longer range interception. The 1960s saw the development of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) capability with the Royal Navy’s Hawker Siddeley Harrier, which is still in service with the Indian military. Propeller powered fighter aircraft did not end with the flights of the Gloster Meteor and the 1950s saw experiments with VTOL propeller powered aircraft that sat on their tails in a vertical position.
Since the 1980s fast jets have become stealthy, first with the now retired Lockheed Martin F-117 Nighthawk which was primarily a bomber, to the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor, an interceptor, and the multirole Lockheed Martin F-35, which are both said to have very small radar signatures.
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