![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1959_F106_Delta_Dart_v2-300x199.jpeg)
USAF’s last dedicated interceptor, “The Six” was optimized for speed, radar target detection and range, equipped with internal weapons. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1959_T-33_Shooting_Star_Trainer-300x210.jpeg)
T-33 Shooting Star. Derived from the Korean-era F-80 fighter, the T-33 was used by more than 20 countries. As a full-scale target, it served USAF until 1997.
USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1941_A-20_Havoc-300x210.jpg)
A-20 Havoc. A WWII holdover, the Havoc was used largely in the Pacific by the Army Air Forces. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1942_A-26_Invader-300x210.jpg)
A-26/B-26 Invader. This WWII-era bomber proved highly effective at counterinsurgency in Vietnam and was used by the CIA at the Bay of Pigs invasion in Cuba. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1942_P-47_Thunderbolt-300x210.jpg)
P-47 Thunderbolt. Later the F-47, the “Jug” of WWII served with the Air National Guard for years. The type was used against Puerto Rican nationalists in 1950. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1944_F-80_Shooting_Star-300x210.jpeg)
F-80 Shooting Star. USAF’s first operational jet fighter, the F-80 served in Korea as a dogfighter and attack aircraft. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1945_A1_Skyraider-300x210.jpeg)
A-1 Skyraider. Developed for WWII, the Navy-designed “Spad” was a star at counterinsurgency in Vietnam and in helping recover downed airmen there. National Museum of the USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1946_P-82_Twin_Mustang-300x210.jpeg)
P-82 Twin Mustang. USAF’s last piston-engined fighter, the “Double Trouble” scored the first kills in Korea and served as a day/night interceptor. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1947-48_F84B_Thunderjet-300x210.jpg)
F-84 Thunderjet. The F-84 destroyed 60 percent of the ground targets attacked by air in Korea and was the first mount of the Thunderbirds aerial demo team. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1948_F-51_Mustang-300x210.jpeg)
F-51 Mustang. The WWII-era Mustang’s agility and range made it ideal for close air support missions in Korea, flown largely by Guard and Reserve units. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1948_F84F_Thunderstreak-300x210.jpg)
A U.S. Air F-84F Thunderstreak. A swept-wing upgrade of the straight-wing F-84, the Thunderstreak was a fighter-bomber in Korea, later serving in the Berlin crisis and ANG. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1949_F-86A_Sabre-300x210.jpeg)
F-86 Sabre. USAF’s first swept-wing jet fighter could outfly its counterpart in Korea, the Soviet MiG-15. Nearly 10,000 served in countries worldwide. Courtesy
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1949_F-86D_Sabre_Dog-300x210.jpg)
F-86D Sabre Dog. A development of the F-86A, the Sabre Dog was larger, had afterburning engines, and a long-range radar, equipping it for interceptor missions. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1950_F-94_Starfire-300x210.jpeg)
F-94 Starfire. A development of the F-80, and constantly upgraded, the F-94 served as an all-weather Air Defense Command interceptor during the 1950s. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1950_F89_Scorpion-300x210.jpg)
F-89 Scorpion. The twin-engined Scorpion was the first interceptor armed with guided missiles and the Genie, an unguided nuclear air-to-air missile. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1954_F-100_Super_Sabre-300x210.jpeg)
F-100 Super Sabre. The first USAF operational jet to fly supersonic in level flight, the F-100 earned its reputation in Vietnam as a fighter-bomber. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1956_F-102_Delta_Dagger-300x210.jpg)
F-102 Delta Dagger. The supersonic, delta-winged “Deuce” Air Defense interceptor also flew in Vietnam as a bomber escort and in a few ground-attack missions. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1957_F101_Voodoo-300x210.jpg)
F-101 Voodoo. The Voodoo was mainly an interceptor, but the RF-101 reconnaissance version played a key role in Vietnam and the Cuban Missile Crisis. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1958_F-104_Starfighter-300x210.jpeg)
F-104 Starfighter. Developed in two years, the “Missile With a Man in It” served in Vietnam and as an interceptor. Rocket-aided test models flew to the edge of space. Ken Hackman/USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1958_F-105_Thunderchief-300x210.jpeg)
F-105 Thunderchief. The “Thud” scored dogfight kills in Vietnam, but was mostly used as a bomb truck and a Wild Weasel defense suppression jet. Rick Diaz/USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1960_F4_Phantom_II-300x210.jpeg)
F-4E Phantom II. Another Navy adaptation, the F-4C/D/E were USAF’s premiere fighters in Vietnam, also adapted to ground attack and fitted with guns. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1962_F-5_Tiger_II-300x210.jpg)
F-5E Tiger II. A development of the T-38 trainer, the F-5 served many years as USAF’s main “Aggressor” jet, emulating adversary aircraft like the MiG-21. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1964_A-37_OA-37_Dragonfly-300x210.jpeg)
OA-37 Dragonfly. Used for target marking and light attack, the OA-37’s bigger engines and underwing stores distinguished it from the T-37B trainer. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1967_A-7_Corsair_II-300x210.jpg)
A-7D Corsair II. Adapted from a Navy jet, USAF used the A-7 for precision attack of ground targets and close air support from the 1960s to the 1990s. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1967_F-111_Aardvark-300x210.jpeg)
F-111 Aardvark. Arising from a troubled joint fighter program, the F-111 evolved into a fine medium bomber used in wars from Vietnam to Iraq. Master Sgt. Patrick Nugent/USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1968_AC-130_Ghostrider-300x210.jpg)
AC-130 Ghostrider. Bristling with cannons, the AC-130 gunship variant of the Hercules transport orbits and watches an enemy, destroying vehicles and formations. James West/USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1969_F4G_Phantom_wild_weasel-300x210.jpeg)
F-4G Wild Weasel. The F-4G used HARM missiles and jamming gear in Iraq to silence or destroy enemy air defense radars and missile systems. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1976_A10_Thunderbolt_II-300x210.jpeg)
1976 A10 Thunderbolt II. Designed to stop 1970s Soviet tanks with its huge 30 mm gun and absorb damage, the A-10 has flown close air support for nearly 50 years. Master Sgt. William Greer
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1979_F-15C_Eagle-300x210.jpg)
F-15A/C Eagle. Undefeated in air combat nearly 50 years after its rollout, the Eagle boasts triple-sonic speed and high maneuverability. Tech. Sgt. John McRell
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1979_F-16_Fighting_Falcon-300x210.jpeg)
F-16A/C. USAF’s “backbone” fighter since the 1980s, the F-16 has evolved from a day fighter to a multirole platform focused on ground attack and SEAD. USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1982_F-117_Nighthawk-300x210.jpeg)
F-117 Night Hawk. The world’s first operational stealth combat jet, the F-117 was a prodigy at destroying the most-heavily defended targets in Iraq and Serbia.
Staff Sgt. Derrick Goode
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1990_F-22A_Raptor-300x210.jpg)
F-22 Raptor. Acknowledged as the world’s best-ever dogfighter, the F-22 combines stealth and supercruise with sensor fusion and extreme agility, aided by thrust-vectoring. Tech Sgt. Ben Bloker
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/2021_F15EX_Eagle_II-300x210.jpeg)
F-15E/EX. Strengthened for heavy payloads, the Strike Eagle has conformal fuel tanks for longer range. The new EX features fly-by-wire flight controls. Ethan Wagner/USAF
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/V2_F35_Opener-300x210.jpg)
The Air Force’s strike “quarterback,” due to its massive information-collection capability, the “Panther” is nevertheless a 9G fighter and a multirole attack jet which will be the backbone of the combat air forces for decades to come. Airman 1st Class Yosselin Perla
![](https://www.airforcemag.com/app/uploads/2022/08/1951_KC-97_Stratofreighter_Tanker-300x210.jpeg)
KC-97 Stratofreighter. Derived from the C-97, the KC-97 freighter/tanker expanded fighter range in Vietnam and served with the ANG well into the 1970s. USAF