INTRODUCTION
Air superiority playsa really important role in any modern conflict. Hence, fighter jets are a crucial asset for any country that wants to defend its sky from external threats or take the fight to its rivals. Speed has been one of the key aspects of any fighter jet. From the advent of military air combat, engineers are trying to design fighter jets that can go after and faster. Modern fighter jets, can reach astounding speeds and cover vast distances in a matter of minutes. This makes them tactically invaluable for military strategists. In this article, Defence Talks lists the top 10 fastest jet fighters in the world sequenced in ascending order of their speed. Let's get started
10. CHENGDU J-10
The Chengdu J-10 is Chinese multirole combat aircraft designed by the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation of China. It is currently the fastest jet produced by China and People‘s Liberation Army Air Force is its primary user. J 10 was designed in response to the introduction of MiG-29 & Su-27 by the Soviet Union and deployment of F-15 & F-16 by the United States. It was initially supposed to be an air superiority fighter but design changes were made to give it multirole capabilities. Work on the jet started in 1988 and was flown for the first time in 1998. The jet was introduced in 2006 and are is still in service with more than 400 of these build over the years.
9. DASSAULT MIRAGE 2000
The Mirage 2000 is a multirole fighter jet developed by Dassault Aviation of France. Works on it started in the mid-1970s, the first test flight was done in 1978. French Air Force received its first Mirage 2000s in1984. The Mirage 2000 came into existence after the French government decided to withdraw from the Panavia Tornado fighter program which had the backing of Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom and instead decided to pursue its own fighter jet development. Mirage 2000 ultimately became one of the most well designed multirole fighters and more than 600 of these were built. It is in service with many countries in the world as of now and has seen several mid-life upgrades.
8. SUKHOI SU-57
Sukhoi 57 also known as Pak FA or T 50 is the first 5th generation jet fighter to be developed by Russia. The fighter jet is a direct competitor to American F 22 Raptor & F 35 Lightning II. Its first flight happened on 29 January 2010. Though the Russian Air Force was supposed to receive the fighter earlier, it ultimately got them in 2018. The delay mainly occurred due to the funding problem and engine development issues. The Su 57 program had India’s financial backing but India later pulled out due to requirement mismatch. The fighter saw limited combat deployment in Syria. Currently, it is still being optimized and several issues are being sorted out like engine reliability.
7. EUROFIGHTER TYPHOON
Typhoon is a twin-engine multirole fighter manufactured by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Systems, and Leonardo which formed a joint holding company Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH in 1986. It has the backing of the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain. Initially, France was also part of the venture but later left due to a dispute over operational requirements and design principals.
The first flight of the jet took place on 27 March 1994 and it entered service in 2003. The typhoon was designed as an air superiority fighter and is considered to be one of the most agile jet fighters in the world. Several enhancements to the jet have made it a more capable multirole fighter with the ability to carry out complex ground attack missions. Typhoon's first saw action when it was used for airstrikes on Libya in 2011.
6. LOCKHEED MARTIN F-22 RAPTOR
The F-22 Raptor was the first 5th generation jet fighter in the world. F 22 was developed by Lockheed Martin for the United States Air Force and is an air superiority fighter though it is also capable of air to ground attack missions. In 1991, YF-22 Lockheed’s early prototype of the F-22 won the competition against McDonnell Douglas’ YF-23. It entered service with the United States Air Force in 2005. After Lockheed built 195 aircraft -187 production models and 8 test aircraft, the program was canceled.
The fighter is no longer produced due to a lack of enemies sited at that time, high cost, and development of F-35. It is to be noted that even today, F 22 cannot be exported to any other country as per American federal Law. Though F 22 is not even close to topping this list, it is to be noted that it is capable of super-cruise at Mach 1.8 which is more than any other fighter. Supercruise is the ability to have sustained supersonic flight without having to use the highly inefficient afterburners. With this, F 22 can intercept targets which subsonic aircraft would lack the speed to pursue and an afterburner-dependent aircraft would lack the fuel to reach.
5. SUKHOI SU-27
In 1969, Soviet intelligence got the know about the impending introduction of a new fighter by America, which was F 15. They realized that the fighters in their arsenal won’t be able to tackle the new American jet and hence wanted to have a solution for this threat. To meet the challenge they decided to pursue two fighters - a lightweight one which came to be known as the MiG-29 and a heavy fighter which was the Su-27.
The Sukhoi Su 27 was designed in the 1970s by the Sukhoi design bureau and it first flew in 1977. Due to numerous design changes and issues, the fighter was delayed and was introduced to the Soviet Air Force in 1985. It was well taken by pilots and become one of the most successful jet coming out from the Soviet Union. Sukhoi has built over 800 of these jets and several countries have bought them and using them as of now.
4. MCDONNELL DOUGLAS F-15 EAGLE
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| Top 10 Fastest Jets operational in the world |
Air superiority plays
10. CHENGDU J-10
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| Chengdu J-10 |
The Chengdu J-10 is Chinese multirole combat aircraft designed by the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation of China. It is currently the fastest jet produced by China and People‘s Liberation Army Air Force is its primary user. J 10 was designed in response to the introduction of MiG-29 & Su-27 by the Soviet Union and deployment of F-15 & F-16 by the United States. It was initially supposed to be an air superiority fighter but design changes were made to give it multirole capabilities. Work on the jet started in 1988 and was flown for the first time in 1998. The jet was introduced in 2006 and are is still in service with more than 400 of these build over the years.
9. DASSAULT MIRAGE 2000
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| Mirage 2000 |
8. SUKHOI SU-57
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| Su-57 |
7. EUROFIGHTER TYPHOON
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| Eurofighter Typhoon |
The first flight of the jet took place on 27 March 1994 and it entered service in 2003. The typhoon was designed as an air superiority fighter and is considered to be one of the most agile jet fighters in the world. Several enhancements to the jet have made it a more capable multirole fighter with the ability to carry out complex ground attack missions. Typhoon's first saw action when it was used for airstrikes on Libya in 2011.
6. LOCKHEED MARTIN F-22 RAPTOR
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| F-22 Raptor |
The fighter is no longer produced due to a lack of enemies sited at that time, high cost, and development of F-35. It is to be noted that even today, F 22 cannot be exported to any other country as per American federal Law. Though F 22 is not even close to topping this list, it is to be noted that it is capable of super-cruise at Mach 1.8 which is more than any other fighter. Supercruise is the ability to have sustained supersonic flight without having to use the highly inefficient afterburners. With this, F 22 can intercept targets which subsonic aircraft would lack the speed to pursue and an afterburner-dependent aircraft would lack the fuel to reach.
5. SUKHOI SU-27
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| Su-27 |
The Sukhoi Su 27 was designed in the 1970s by the Sukhoi design bureau and it first flew in 1977. Due to numerous design changes and issues, the fighter was delayed and was introduced to the Soviet Air Force in 1985. It was well taken by pilots and become one of the most successful jet coming out from the Soviet Union. Sukhoi has built over 800 of these jets and several countries have bought them and using them as of now.
4. MCDONNELL DOUGLAS F-15 EAGLE
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| F-15 Eagle |
During
the Vietnam War, U.S military realized that it needed a lightweight agile jet
for air or air combat when faced by
Soviet jets which were more suited for that kind of role. After requirements were finalized and the
competition was held, United States Air Force chose McDonnell Douglas to manufacture the fighter which was named F 15. F 15 was tested for the first time in in 1972
and American Air Force got them in 1976.
But the jet never saw combat in the Vietnam War as it was too late for
it, the war had ended in 1975. Nevertheless, it became a very successful
fighter with more than 1,200 being manufactured and many countries buying it.
3. F-15 STRIKE EAGLE
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| F-15 Strike Eagle |
The
F 15 Strike Eagle is derived from F-15 Eagle.
Unlike the F-15 Eagle which was designed for air superiority, F 15
Strike Eagle was designed to be a
multirole fighter. F 15 Strike Eagle
added air to ground strike capability which was not present in F 15 Strike Eagle apart from various other improvements. The Strike Eagle was not intended to replace
the Eagle but was meant to replace the F-111.
F 15 Strike Eagle was pitted against the General Dynamics F-16XL design
for the contract and it won after a
thorough evaluation was conducted between 1981 to 1983. In 1986, it was tested for the first time and
United States Air Force received the first fighter jets in1988.
2. MIG-31
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| Mig-31 |
MiG-31
designated as “Foxhound” by NATO was designed by the Mikoyan design bureau during the Cold War era. It’s an interceptor aircraft that was built
to replace the aging MiG-25. Designed to
defend Soviet airspace from enemy jets, its basic design philosophy was the same as MiG-25, and MiG-31 used many features and
design elements from MiG-25. The test
flights of the jet started in 1975. The
production of MiG-31s began in 1979 and the Soviet Air Defence Force introduced
them into service in 1981. Several important additions included better
avionic and deployment of phased array radar system - a first for any fighter jet in the world. The top speed reduced a bit when compared to
MiG-25 but it gained significantly when it
came to maneuverability, which made it a better overall fighter jet.
1. MIG-25
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| Mig-25 |
During the Cold War period, the Soviet Union
needed a fighter that could defend its vast air apace from NATO fighters & bombers. The MiG 25, designated as Foxbat by NATO was
designed to fulfill that need. MiG 25
was an interceptor with a secondary role of reconnaissance aircraft. It was supposed to be scrambled into action
if enemy jets were detected above the Soviet air space. This is why great
importance was given to speed and unlike other Soviet jets, maneuverability took back seat when the fighter was
envisioned.
It was the last aircraft
designed by Mikhail Gurevich. The MiG-25
was first tested in 1964. After initial
testing, the fighter entered service in 1970.
It saw production from 1964 to 1984 when more than 1150 fighters were
manufactured. The jet has seen many
upgrades over the years and is still in limited service with several countries including the Russian Air Force.
The MiG-25's speed was limited to Mach 2.83, but it could reach a maximum speed of Mach 3.2 or more with the risk of engine damage. The Mig-25 was a true piece of art when it appeared. Nothing like it existed at that time. It still holds many records among which the altitude record with 124,000 ft.
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