Editing Combat Aircraft (section)

==Combat Roles==

===Fighters===
Fighters are the predominant aircraft type in most air forces; they mainly engage other aircraft, though depending on their design, they may have some flexibility in their combat capabilities:

*'''Air Superiority''': These fighters are dedicated solely to fight enemy aircraft. As such, they have enhanced aerodynamic performance and will outmanuever other types of aircraft. This comes at the cost of a lack of ground-attack capability. Because they are more expensive to produce, and are used solely for taking airspace, most air forces use a limited number of these.
*'''Interceptor''': Also called point-defense fighter. They were a key defensive component of nuclear deterence back when long-range bombers where the only nuclear weapons platform. While they had limited range, they were extremely fast, and thus could intercept any aircraft that threatened their airspace. With the introduction of ICBMs, they were reduced to keeping out enemy spy aircraft, until ground-based SAMs made them obsolete entirely, the role having been folded into Air Superiority fighters when they don't carry Air-to-Ground ordnance, which is pretty much all the time.
*'''Multi-Role''': Most fighters today fall under this category. They are general all-rounders and can take both airborne and ground-based weaponry, depending on the mission profile. As technology improves, the once new Air Superiority fighters will eventually be upgraded for service as Multi-Role fighters (i.e. [[wikipedia:F-15 Strike Eagle|F-15 Strike Eagle]] & F-22 Raptor) to get more use out of the old generation.
*'''Strike Fighter''': A type of multi-role fighter that puts more emphasis on ground-attack strikes, probably not a dedicated platform but upgraded from last generation dedicated Multiroles to again get more use out of expensive gear.
*'''Fighter-Bomber''': A fighter that has been converted into dropping bombs, usually dropping ordnance at nearest available target of opportunity before returning to fighter mode. These have since been phased out as dedicated ground attack aircraft emerged.
*'''Heavy Fighter''': Usually twin engine frames used to carry loads of heavy machine guns or cannons to hunt down bombers and also carried bombs and rockets for ground attack. The design mostly ended up being used for long range missions like the P-38, as recon planes or as nights fighters equipped with radar in World War 2. Became obsolete after Korea like the Fighter-Bomber.
*'''UCAVs''': While still a few years off, Turkey's MIUS program has gotten production greenlight as the "Red Apple" and it seems to be the next big thing in air-to-air warfare.

===Ground-Attack===
Ground attack airplanes are used for supporting ground operations by providing close-air support to friendly infantry. Most such aircraft are helicopters, as their ability to hover and stay close to the ground makes them better suited for this role. However, some fixed-wing aircraft do exist as well.

*'''Fixed-Wing Attack Aircraft''': Originally used to harass and demoralize enemy ground forces, as technology improved, attack aircraft became more accurate and survivable to enemy fire. They started to vanish during the Cold War as helicopters and strike fighters took over their role, but a small number managed to find their niche as they could be deployed more rapidly than helicopters, while taking more damage and being able to loiter longer than strike fighters (which oftentimes are moving too fast to get more than one hit onto a target area). The [[A-10 Warthog]] is considered the standard for modern fixed-wing attack aircraft, possessing a tank-busting Gatling gun that goes BRRRRRRRRRRRRRT and a heavily protected cockpit that is often called an "armored bathtub." They are also one of the most effective counters to Attack Helicopters and carry less risk compared to Man-portable air-defense systems and anti air guns.  Something that other fixed wing aircraft just suck at. Remote controlled or even autonomous drones are likely going to be next step of evolution for this archetype.
*'''Wild Weasel''': A ground attack support craft, a Wild Weasel's job is to be a [[DISTRACTION CARNIFEX]], get targeted by enemy radar and ground to air weapons, then either follow the targeting beam back to the source or direct an ally to do the same. Famously the motto for American Wild Weasels units is "''YGBSM''" or ''"You gotta be shitting me"'' based on what somebody who was told his job was to be a designated target said in response.  The equipment for the job includes additional detectors, lots of countermeasures, and very fast special purpose missiles.
** A role that has developed in Late August-Early September 2022 is that the mere presence of a Wild Weasel with Anti-Radiation Missiles in an area forces enemy AA to choose between radar coverage and risking an ARM strike or turning off their radars and allowing drones to come out hunting.
*'''Attack Helicopters''': <s>[[meme|Something that people may sexually identify as]]</s> During the Vietnam war, some army generals figured out that if sticking a few machineguns onto a [[UH-1 Huey]] turned it into a flying troop transport, adding some armor and sticking some rockets and autocannons onto a helicopter would turn it into a flying tank. This lead to the development of the [[AH-1 Cobra Attack Helicopter]], which the majority of modern attack helicopters take after design-wise; narrow profile, pilot behind gunner position, chin-mounted gun and weapon pods mounted on wingtips, etc. A helicopter can also avoid enemy radar more easily by hovering closer to the ground, though they can still be vulnerable to small arms fire; particularly if the tail gets shot out. A non-stationary helicopter is still hard to hit though with anything other than rapid-fire cannons or guided missiles.
*'''Transport Helicopter''': Much like land-based Armored Personnel Carriers, transport helicopters can ferry soldiers to distant battlefields with relative speed. While they are generally not frontline combat aircraft, they are often armed enough with doorguns and sometimes rockets to clear out and secure landing zones to provide infantry the space they need to infiltrate and exfiltrate as needed. Some heavy-lifting helicopters may even be able to tow along armored vehicles for additional support.
*'''Gunship''': Whereas "gunship" will often refer to a heavily-armed helicopter, fixed-wing gunships are quite rare, but also awe-inspiring. Basically, a gunship mounts multiple guns on its side and strafes enemy ground targets by soaking them in fire. Only a handful of such aircraft have existed, all of which from converted aircraft; the G and H variants of the WWII [[wikipedia:B-25|B-25 medium bomber]] had been converted to mount at least a ''dozen'' .50 cal machineguns and a 75mm cannon for anti-ship warfare, while the [[wikipedia:AC-47|AC-47]] mounted three miniguns on its side. The latest one is the [[wikipedia:AC-130|AC-130]], which mounts a 105mm cannon and various autocannons or rotary guns for total annihilation. The downside though is that such aircraft are quite vulnerable to enemy aircraft and AA weapons, making them only useful if friendly forces have already taken control of the airspace which makes them perfect for the 21st century chronic low intensity insurgency fighting.
*'''UCAVs''': Drones have proven capable in peer-to-peer warfare with the TB-2 mauling Russian convoys and air defense units in Ukraine, to the point of getting a song written in it's name. They are definitely here to stay for ground attack in some way. The thing to remember about drones is that they can straddle the line between plane and missile. So the TB-2 is a plane, but a loitering munition is a smart missile that just orbits looking for a target until give the command to do it's best Kamikaze impression.

===Bombers===
Bombers, quite simply, drop bombs. Two types exist: strategic bombers (of which a mission will be built around destroying a specific target), and tactical bombers (where a bomber will attack targets as part of an overall mission, such as supporting ground forces). In the beginning, they had terrible accuracy, so they had to try and saturate targets with as many bombs as they could carry in the hopes that one of them would hit the right target. Or, if they were dive-bombers, approach the target at a steep angle before releasing and pulling away as quickly as possible. 

In WWII (and to a lesser extent in World War I), Bombers could be divided into light, medium, and heavy bombers. Light bombers were more tactically-oriented and resembled the fighter-bombers listed above. Medium and Heavy bombers were bigger and slower, but could carry more payloads. They oftentimes had defensive machinegun pods and fighter escorts as well, given that they were massively important targets.

During the Cold War, emphasis was put on making them fly higher and farther to avoid enemy defenses and deliver nuclear payloads, though this capability has since declined due to the invention of ICBMs. In warfare they generally carry conventional bombs, though they can also carry cruise missiles for taking out distant targets where an overhead flyby would be too risky. Nowadays they are either Tactical Bombers or Strategic Bombers.

The current era of asymmetrical warfare has created proposals to reintroduce the propeller powered bomber as "light-attack aircraft". Modern bombers are really, really expensive not only to build but to operate, and jihadis (or other terrorists) virtually never have anti-air ability beyond some DShKs manned by people with no anti-aircraft training, rendering most of the expensive defenses on the bombers overkill. Thus the idea comes of making a cheap aircraft dedicated to bombing such targets cheaply. The biggest obstacles in their adoptions is the massive ones of securing congressional funding, then passing military design/appropriations programs, and the optics of sending soldiers out to fight in WW2 looking relics.

===Electronic Warfare===
These specialist craft have one primary purpose: to degrade the effectiveness of the radar and guidance systems of enemy aircraft. These can be converted fighters or utility craft, usually by sticking a radar-jammer onto it. They can still carry conventional weapons (especially converted old fighters), but will oftentimes be supported by other fighters for engaging enemy craft.

===Mothership===
While normally associated with Science Fiction, motherships did have a practical, although limited use in history. The earliest airborne motherships were airships, having internal hangars to carry biplane fighters, such as the American Akron class airships. In WWII, the Russians re-purposed the obsolete TB-3 Heavy bomber into carrying 2-5 light fighters, thereby extending their operational range and allowing them to carry heavier payloads. Nowadays, the mothership concept is only used for experimental aircraft or for carrying unmanned drones; Aircraft carriers are much more practical for launching fighters away from one's home base.

===Airborne Early Warning and Control/AWACS and Command Planes===
AWACS planes are used to direct allied squadrons to their proper targets and make sense of the gajillions of people screaming into the radio at any one point of the battle. Usually have dedicated high power radar that you can't fit in a fighter. Command planes are just that, serving as a mobile command center for some high ranking REMF (rear echelon motherfucker) to micromanage their troops, or at least give said REMF eyes and ears on the field and also as VIP planes such as the famous Air Force One. One rather brutal application of the AWACS is guiding missiles fired from fighters from tens of kilometers away to enemy targets, the shooter not turning on radar and the poor bastard getting blown out of the air without even realizing that the standard wide area AWACS scan is actually getting his ass marked for death. A 45km example was given when a Turkish F-16 shot down a Syrian L-39 with an AMRAAM guided by AWACS radar.

{{Vehicle Warfare}}

[[Category:History]] [[Category:Vehicles]]