
Fighter aircraft are small military planes that are made to fight other airplanes. They are often fast, having aerodynamic shapes (shapes that make them move through air easily) and very powerful engines for their size. They also usually are maneuverable (turn well). Fighters can carry many different kinds of weapons, including missiles, machine guns, and bombs. While fighters may be used as attack aircraft to attack vehicles, soldiers, or buildings on the ground, they are different from bombers because they are mainly designed to fight other airplanes. Specialized fighters have been made, such as night fighters, interceptors, and air superiority fighters.
Examples of fighter aircraft
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Images for kids
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U.S. Air Force fighter aircraft representing different eras; a World War II P-38 Lightning (upper right), a pair of F-86 Sabres from the early jet age, and a modern F-22 Raptor (lower left)
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Hawker Sea Hurricanes in formation
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MiG-17 underside
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A USAF F-22A Raptor stealth fighter
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Billy Bishop sitting in his Nieuport 23 with the machine gun (just visible at the top of the picture) mounted to fire over the propeller
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A Sopwith Camel at the RAF Museum
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Hawker Fury of 43 Squadron, RAF, a typical late inter-war biplane
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An early monoplane fighter: the Boeing P-26 Peashooter, which first flew in 1932
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Messerschmitt Bf 109G-2/Trop "Black 6"
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The long-range Mitsubishi A6M Zero typified the highly maneuverable, but lightly armored, fighter design.
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This Supermarine Spitfire XVI was typical of World War II fighters optimized for high level speeds and good climb rates.
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Ilmari Juutilainen, a Finnish fighter pilot with Brewster BW-364 "Orange 4" on 26 June 1942 during the Continuation War
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A modern reproduction of the Messerschmitt Me 262 in flight in 2006. The first two operational turbojet aircraft, the Me 262 and then the Gloster Meteor entered service in 1944.
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Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat, early 1942
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Lockheed P-38 Lightnings in formation
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Grumman F6F-3 Hellcats, May 1943
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The Messerschmitt Me 163 was the fastest aircraft of WWII.
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Messerschmitt Me 262A at the National Museum of the United States Air Force
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RAF Gloster Meteor
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USAF Lockheed P-80B Shooting Stars at Langley AFB
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MiG-21F interceptor
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Soviet MiG-23 MLA "Flogger-G"
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A USAF F-16 Fighting Falcon taking off
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Side view of a German Air Force Panavia Tornado
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A USAF McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle
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Sukhoi Su-27 "Flanker"
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French Air Force Dassault Rafale during aerial refueling
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A flight of two USAF Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptors
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An MBDA Meteor, an ARH BVR AAM used on the Eurofighter Typhoon, Saab JAS 39 Gripen, Lockheed Martin F-35, and Dassault Rafale
