Top 11: Best fighter aircraft flying today

Seemingly spurning macho desires to make fighters ever faster, heavier, and more expensive to operate, Swedish manufacturer Saab took great care to emphasize more sensible and boring qualities with the Saab JAS 39 Gripen. This effort led to a maintainable fighter punching well above its lightweight and small size.

10: Saab JAS 39 Gripen C/D

For a modestly sized nation whose government does not have global dominance on its agenda, the key aim is deterrence, ensuring that any country wishing to invade or dominate you cannot easily do so. For such a nation, Gripens armed with the Meteor long-range air-to-air missiles might be the ultimate air defender, especially when combined with a well-integrated air-defence system and dispersed bases.

Never being far from the border or a base, fuel and even weapons-load don’t matter so much, because the Gripen can scoot back to a cave base and re-arm and refuel. The Meteor enables threats to be defeated while keeping out of their missile range. The next generation Gripen E will merit a higher position in any top 10 once it enters full frontline service.

9: Mikoyan MiG-31 ‘Foxhound’

Russia’s MiG-31 is at the opposite end of the weight and size spectrum of the diminutive Gripen. It is not a fighter as such, but a heavyweight interceptor designed to defend against bombers from long distances. Conceived in the Cold War, it remains in service today where it offers a unique combination of unbeatable top speed – 3000 km/h – and long-range missiles in the form of the R-37M.

As a defender against bombers, the MiG-31 may well be the most potent interceptor in the world. Being such a large country, Russia has to have a big, fast aircraft capable of covering a large distance at high speed to meet the threat.

9: Mikoyan MiG-31 ‘Foxhound’

Being big means that a big sensor and long-range weapons can be carried, and the Foxhound’s Zaslon-M radar is indeed large, as are the Foxhound’s R-33 and R-37 missiles. You may be less concerned about signature and platform manoeuvrability because your ideal approach will be to stand back and hit bombers rather than engage fighters.

The reasons it does not rank higher in this list are three-fold: It is likely the least stealthy of all modern fighter aircraft being extremely easy to detect on either radar or with infra-red sensors (thanks to its massive hot engines). Russian sensors and electronics are not as effective as Western (or Chinese) sets, and as such, the MiG-31 pilot is at a situational disadvantage despite the brute force of his large radar and access to data-linked information.

8: Sukhoi ‘Flanker’ series

In the 1970s, the Soviet Union created the Sukhoi Su-27 (pictured), an extremely large air superiority fighter (assigned the NATO reporting name ‘Flanker’) largely to counter the US F-15 Eagle. It remains in service around the world today with many air forces, including China, India, Russia and Ukraine.

The Su-27 can carry a very large number of air-to-air missiles (12), fly great distances – and at lighter operating weights (when it is not carrying much in the way of fuel or weapons) demonstrates astonishing levels of manoeuvrability, which in some variants is aided by thrust vectoring. Its large powerful radar is capable of detecting aircraft at extreme ranges.

8: Sukhoi ‘Flanker’ series

The Sukhoi Su-35 (pictured) represents the most advanced Russian ‘Flanker’ but other candidates for the most potent member of the Flanker series include the Chinese J-11D and J-16. The latest Chinese Flankers are radically updated aircraft with reduced radar cross section and are fitted with active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, something not carried by any Russian Flankers.

Flankers are easy to see on radars due to their size and shape, though their defensive electronics are highly regarded. Russia’s attempt to replace the Flanker with the Su-57 ‘Felon’ has not gone well, with only a small number of Su-57s created to date. The Su-57 is stealthier than the Su-35 but is not yet at a credible level of maturity to be included in this list.

7: Chengdu J-20 ‘Mighty Dragon’

In the 1980s, China was making military aircraft equivalent to those made in the 1960s in the US and USSR. Since then, China has leaped forward, creating some of the most capable types currently in production, its lighter J-10, and JF-17 narrowly avoiding placement in our top 10. Other than its radically upgraded Flankers, Chinese most potent fighter is the J-20.

China is the second nation in the world to put an indigenous stealth fighter into operational service. With its extremely long-range anti-air weapons, this relatively stealthy platform could prove formidable. It has the size to carry a lot of fuel, and a very large internal weapons bay, providing sufficient volume for a wide range of weapons.

7: Chengdu J-20 ‘Mighty Dragon’

Stealth, supercruise – the ability to cruise at supersonic speed without afterburner - and modern weapons mean the J-20 is likely to mature into an extremely capable aircraft, unique in role. Achieving this depends on the degree to which China can overcome its problems with engine development. The J-20 is less stealthy than the F-22 and F-35, one F-35 pilot has stated that he doesn’t believe the J-20 is low-observable in a meaningful sense.

Further knowledge about this type may earn it a higher ranking in this list, but little concrete is known about it. That this, along with the immature and troubled Russian Sukhoi Su-57, are catalysts for the next generation of fighters is a sign that it is taken seriously in high circles.

6: Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet

The mainstay of the United States Navy, the Super Hornet is a multi-role fighter-bomber designed to operate from aircraft carriers. It is loved by its crews for its excellent systems, reliability and ease of handling, a vital quality for an aircraft that has to land safely on aircraft carriers.

The Super Hornet is akin to a luxury sports car without a big enough engine: it has all the ‘bells and whistles’ (a very powerful advanced radar, reduced radar cross-section, an excellent cockpit, data-linking capability and good weapons) but lacks the grunt to make the most of its superb systems at higher speeds and altitudes.

6: Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet

At lower airspeeds, no aircraft without thrust-vectoring, is more agile than the Super Hornet. Its almost supernatural ability to point its nose in any direction it wants is legendary, as is its ability to fly High Alpha manoeuvres (flying with the nose raised relative to the direction of flight).

The weapons carriage – the way the bombs and missiles are carried – is among the draggiest of any fighter. If the US Navy receives the new-generation long-range air-to-air missile it wants, it is likely that the Super Hornet will be the first to receive it. Along with the Rafale, the Super Hornet, with its superb systems and weapons, is one of the best all-rounders.

5: Eurofighter Typhoon

The Eurofighter Typhoon is all about power and performance. It is one of the fastest climbing aircraft in the world (perhaps the fastest) and one of the best turning. Created by the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy and Spain, it is perhaps the best-armed fighter in the world for beyond-visual-range combat.

The Typhoon is very fast, high flying and energetic, imbuing its AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) and Meteor missiles with a longer reach than those launched by lower-performance aircraft. It is combat-proven in both the air-to-ground and air-to-air roles.

5: Eurofighter Typhoon

It is also armed with two of the very best infra-red guided short-range missiles, the exceptionally fast ASRAAM and the extremely agile IRIS-T. The Typhoon pilot can wear an advanced helmet that can both display vital information and assign targets – making the pilot’s job much easier.

Points that count against the Typhoon are its major cost and absence of radar stealth technologies. Its cockpit interface is not the most modern, nor is the radar fitted to the Typhoons operated by most of its operators. The Typhoon has proved popular with the air forces of the Middle East.

4: Boeing F-15 Eagle

Few fighters have been so highly regarded for so long as this large American fighter. Despite first flying as far back as 1972, the best-equipped Eagle remains among the deadliest fighters in the world. The Eagle’s kill-loss ratio in aerial combat of 104:0 is without precedent and is unmatched by any other fighter in history.

The Eagle combines a large world-class radar (in some variants) offering unmatched detection range, with great range and a large missile load. Unlike European, Russian and Chinese counterparts it currently lacks a long-range air-to-air missile, a serious omission that means it can be shot before it can shoot back in some long-range scenarios.

4: Boeing F-15 Eagle

The F-15 is operated by the air forces of the United States, Japan, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea and Qatar. The F-15A/C series is optimised for the air superiority role, whereas the F-15E Strike Eagle is designed for ground attack and multi-role use.

The most advanced F-15 variant in full operational service is likely the F-15QA. The next variant for USAF, the F-15EX Eagle II currently in service in small numbers, will be the best-equipped fighter in the world and will be radically different to the Eagle of the 1970s.

3: Dassault Rafale

France’s Dassault Rafale is a multirole fighter-bomber available in both land-based and aircraft-carrier-compatible variants. It is perhaps the best all-rounder on this list, with only the Super Hornet offering serious competition. It is well-armed and can carry the long-range Meteor air-to-air missile, as well as the shorter-ranged MICA, and carries what is likely the best aircraft gun, the 30-mm GIAT.

The Rafale pilot enjoys excellent situational awareness thanks to a wide range of capable sensors, including a small but sophisticated electronically scanning radar and a highly regarded suite of defensive electronics. The Rafale is designed to switch easily between roles on the same mission with exceptional rapidity.

3: Dassault Rafale

The Rafale can also carry laser- and GPS-guided bombs, anti-shipping missiles and cruise missiles. The aircraft enjoys very brisk acceleration rates and has excellent manoeuvrability, especially at lower altitudes – and has held its own in exercises against the best fighters in the world.

The Dassault Rafale does not enjoy the same levels of high-speed high-altitude performance as the Typhoon and Raptor due to a more modest thrust-to-weight ratio. It also lacks the stealth of the F-35 Lightning II and the F-22 Raptor, but despite this, it is a highly regarded and widely respected fighter.

2: Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II

The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II was designed to excel in the attack role and to be used in conjunction with a specialised air-dominance fighter (the F-22), but its stealth and the situational awareness it gives its pilots make it a fearsome opponent in the beyond-visual-range fight in its own right.

According to RAF Wing Commander Scott Williams, the BVR capabilities of the F-35 are ‘second to none, really. First to see is first to shoot is first to kill. I recently heard a comment from someone that “flying the F-35 is like going into a boxing match and your opponent doesn’t even know you’re in the ring yet!”

2: Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II

Williams notes of the boxing comparison, “I like that comment because our lethality in the F-35 is enhanced by being able to deliver the killer or knockout blow to our opponents before they get enough awareness on what’s going on to prepare or do something about it.”

The F-35 is about stealth and situational awareness at the cost of the rather more- exciting traditional fighter virtues of speed and turn-rates. It is available in a conventional land-based variant, the A, a short-take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft version, the C, and a naval version with larger wings.

1: Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor

Creating the world’s best fighter aircraft costs a great deal of money, and the US spared little expense in developing the superlative Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor. The Raptor was created in the late Cold War to rival two new Soviet fighters, the MiG-29 and Su-27, both of which were a serious challenge to US supremacy. Additionally, a new generation of Soviet surface-to-air missiles threatened to shred any conventional, non-stealthy, aircraft approaching Warsaw Pact forces.

Combining the then-new technology of radar stealth (making the aircraft harder to detect by radar), supercruise (the ability to get to and sustain faster than sound speed without recourse to afterburner) and integrated avionics seemed to offer the solution. It was very expensive, even for a US military programme, but the result was impressive.