I've always been fascinated by machines of war. While other kids had their DS's and Gameboys, I was content to flip through page after page of glorious planes, tanks, ships, and quickly accumulated a collection of books on these war machines. Now, I'd love to share this obsession with you guys- here are some of what I consider to be the best fighters of their time. Enjoy!

Fokker D.VII (1918)

The Fokker D.VII was a German WW1 biplane fighter, designed by Fokker. It had a top speed of up to 124 mph, a service ceiling of 19,685 ft, and was armed with two 7.62mm machine guns. Around 3,300 units were produced, mostly for the Luftstreitkräfte (German air force).

What made this fighter so great was not so much its weapons or its speed, although both were rather good for its time. Rather, it was the fact that the D.VII could dive and maneuver without fear of structural failure or uncontrollability- unlike its counterparts, it had a high angle of attack, a very docile (easy to control) stall, and didn't spin easily. These characteristics meant it could go into a stable dive, and spray enemy aircraft with deadly machine gun fire. 

The Fokker D.VII was so formidable, the Armistice specified that all D.VIIs be surrendered by Germany to the Allies at the end of the war.

Supermarine Spitfire (1938)

One of the icons of WWII, the Supermarine Spitfire was the most popular British fighter. It was the most produced British aircraft, and the only fighter to be built throughout the duration of the war. Designed as a short ranged interceptor, the fighter was designed to have the thinnest wing possible, in order to achieve greater top speeds than any of its contemporaries (363 mph).

One of the great things about the Spitfire is how adaptable the airframe was. Originally designed to be powered by a 1030-hp engine, later versions of the plane flew with a 2340-hp engine- the ability to house upgrades such as this meant that the Spitfire's performance and capabilities improved over the course of its production cycle.

Another example of the Spitfire's willingness to upgrade can be seen in its progressive armament. The A wing model was originally fitted with 8 × .303 in (7.7mm) Browning Mk II machine guns, but it was found that too many of these small caliber machine gun shells were required to shoot down enemy aircraft. As a result, later versions were fitted with 20mm Hispano Mk II cannons, or a combination of 20mm cannons and .50 in M2 Browning machine guns. 

North American F-86 Sabre (1949)

The F-86 Sabre was the first American swept-wing jet fighter, the swept wing design allowing it to reach transonic (near speed of sound) speeds of up to 687 mph. Widely considered to be one of the best fighters of the Korean War, it was able to counter its Russian counterpart, the MiG-15 better than any other western plane. In fact, it was so significant in the Korean War that all but one out of the 41 pilots who achieved ace (5 or more kills) status did so in the F-86. 

This fighter/ bomber was armed with 6 .50 in M3 Browning machine guns, and could also carry 36 68mm rockets in two rocket pods and various bombs, including potentially a tactical nuclear weapon. 

The F-86 Sabre is the most produced western jet fighter by a long shot, with total production at 9860 units. The Sabre is such an adaptable and versatile fighter that it was used by the Bolivian Air Force until 1994, 45 years after the first production unit rolled out.

 

Vought F-8 Crusader (1957)

Although the F-4 Phantom is what likely comes to most people's minds when talking about Vietnam War American fighters, the F-4, while used on a much larger scale, was no where near the dominance of the             F-8. While the F-4 Phantom had a kill-loss ratio of 2:1- not horrible, but definitely nothing spectacular, the F-8 claimed an astounding kill ratio of 6.3:1, the highest of the war. 

With a variable- incidence wing, and an engine that produced up to 18,000 lbs of thrust, the Crusader could achieve incredible speeds of up to mach 1.86 (1225 mph). Although known as "the last gunfighter" as it was the last fighter to be armed with cannons as its main armament, with 4 20 mm cannons, only 4 of the 19 kills achieved by the F-8 were from the cannons, the rest from AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles. 

McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle (1972)

The F-15 is, in my opinion, the greatest combat aircraft of all time. The Eagle was designed to do one thing, and do it the best- air superiority. And oh boy does it dominate the skies. As of today, the F-15 has a kill ratio of 98:0- that's right, no F-15s have ever been lost in air-to-air combat.

How does it accomplish this incredible task? With the perfect combination of speed, maneuverability, firepower, avionics, survivability and adaptability.

 -With a top speed of over mach 2.5 (1650 mph), it is not the fastest fighter, but this is more than enough to keep up with its contemporaries.  

-Designed with maneuverability very much in mind, the F-15 has a very large wing area, and a high thrust-to-weight ratio, allowing for tight turns without much loss of airspeed.

-The F-15 can be armed with three different types of missiles- AIM-9, AIM-7, and AIM-120 missiles. These missiles have ranges of 22, 31, and 75 miles, respectively, allowing the F-15 pilot to achieve kills without any visual contact. 

-The F-15 features a HUD system, an inertial guidance system, Identification Friend of Foe system, and a APG-63 radar system which allows for engagements at distances beyond visual range and at very close range.

-The F-15 is so survivable, it can land with only one wing.

-Since it's introduction in 1972 as an air superiority fighter jet, it has been adapted to fit a multitude of roles, including a twin seater version and a  ground attack aircraft. 

The F-15 Eagle is expected to remain in service with the USAF until past 2025. That's a whopping 53 years of service.

I hope you guys enjoyed some information on subjectively the best fighter planes throughout history! If enough people like this one, I can do one on bombers, warships, etc. in the future.