in this episode of aerospace engineer explains I am ranking every single operational fighter and attack aircraft first I'm going to explain the system that I developed that allows me to compare any aircraft type from any era after that brief introduction we're going to analyze the Russian manufactured fighter and attack aircraft following the Russian aircraft we're going to rank the US aircraft which I have updated a couple of their rankings so make sure you stay tuned to the end to see their updated ranking taking into more consideration their combat record following the US aircraft we're going to go into the Chinese manufactured fighter jets and to close us out we're going to go into the European manufactured fighter jets this system is broken into five different categories each of those categories will be assigned to score based on metrics of that category of 1 to 10 10 being the best in that category and those five categories are cost speed Innovation versatility and Effectiveness and you'll notice that each category is only given a certain weight of the score because some of these categories are more important than others for instance I only attributed 5% of the total score to cost because sometimes militaries don't really care about the cost of things but it certainly is a factor in the long-term longevity of a program when assigning a score to the cost category I first look at the cost of when it was purchased and then I use an inflation calculator to get the cost in today's terms after I get this figure I take this number and compare it to similar aircraft with similar capabilities in the same class next we have the speed category and the speed category takes up 10% of the overall score of the aircraft and I use the speed when compared to similar aircraft in the same class in the same era in which that aircraft was developed for example it wouldn't be fair for me to compare an aircraft such as the P-51 to the F-22 because the F-22 was developed long after the P-51 and the P-51 was developed before the sound barrier was even broken the next category is versatility versatility accounts for 30% of the aircraft's total score an aircraft is scored in this category based on its ability to perform a variety of different tasks within its class for instance the F18 Super Hornet scores excellently in this category because it can perform a wide variety of tasks it can be a carrier born aircraft it can perform attack rolls bombing runs and even air-to-air combat whereas certain aircrafts such as the A380 do not score as well in versatility because they can only perform one set of tasks the A380 cannot be converted into a cargo aircraft because of the way that it was designed this drastically limits its capability as an aircraft in the commercial class the next category is innovation and it also comes in at 30 % of the overall aircraft score the Innovation category of an aircraft basically means how much this aircraft Advanced Aviation as a whole for instance the SR71 will score exceptionally high in this category because it pushed Aerospace in such a dramatic fashion the sheer amount of technologies that went into developing the SR71 were absolutely astounding and so Innovation is very high in the SR71 for the Innovation category we're going to be looking at specific metrics such as range thrust the weight ratio fuel capacity payload capacity all of these specific measures that are a good metrics for seeing how Innovative that aircraft was when compared to similar aircraft in the same class another important aspect of innovation is looking at the technology that was developed for the aircraft or new technology that was implemented into the aircraft for example the f117 was the first stealth fighter jet this is an incredible example of innovation and reducing radar cross-section and if you don't know what that means make sure you check out my video all about Stealth aircraft right there the last category included in this ranking is Effectiveness Effectiveness is pretty much what it sounds like it's basically how successful an aircraft was it's also important to note that the score of the effectiveness of this aircraft is only used when comparing other aircraft in its class so some metrics that can help us gauge what the effectiveness score of an aircraft should be will be how many units were produced how long the aircraft was operational the combat record of an aircraft and its overall durability before we get too far into the analysis I just want to State for the record based on a lot of the feedback I got on my previous video with the European fighter jets I do want to say that this is not a ranking of who will win a dog fight this is not who the best aircraft is today if it were to fly in a one-onone fight this is an overall ultimate ranking system essentially what this means is this is not a ranking of what the better aircraft is because I think that would be a really boring ranking system to be honest obviously the most modern fighter is going to be the best fighter so that would mean that it's just going to be a chronological list of what the most recent aircraft is and that doesn't really tell us anything instead I developed this specifically designed ultimate aircraft ranking system to cross analyze all aircraft of any type and from any era so without further Ado let's go ahead and rank every operational fighter and attack aircraft in the Russian Air Force starting with the oldest aircraft the Sue 24 which First Flight took place in 1974 the 24 is a variable sweep Wing Fighter bomber designed for ground attack missions the Su 24's contribution to the conflict have emphasized its value in delivering Precision strengths On Target however its vulnerabilities to Modern air defenses have revealed the need for much more advanced platform forms that can operate effectively in high threat environments like we're seeing in Ukraine the s24 was highly produced and is a multi-roll attack aircraft not really designed for air-to-air combat for the category of cost the suit 24 gets a seven coming in at about $25 million inflation adjusted being a pretty good value for what you're getting out of the aircraft as for the category of speed the top speed of the s24 is approximately Mack 1.6 but it definitely loses a lot of points for its low thrust the weight ratio of 6 and pretty low climb rate pretty much one of the lowest on this list at about 30,000 ft per minute it has to get a six for Speed taking under consideration other aircraft from this generation with much better climb rates better thrust of weight ratios and higher top speeds for versatility it gets a six for it it's slightly above average number of hard points at nine its ability is an air to ground operations but definitely loses points for its combat range at around 382 miles for Innovation there's not too much to report Port but it is a pretty capable aircraft so this gets a five for Innovation the variable sweep Rings is always a cool Innovation however it had been done previously on other aircraft and finally for the category of Effectiveness it also gets a five given the fact that it doesn't have a incredibly Stellar record despite the fact that it has been a very good selling platform for Russia with about 400 units in operation and over 1400 produce in its lifetime being in operation in countries such as Ukraine Sudan Syria Russia Russia Libya Iran bellus and Algeria and that gives the total weighted average score of the Sue 24 5.50 and next up on our list is the Mig 31 Russia's Advanced Interceptor aircraft the Mig 31 does have pretty extraordinary speed and interception capabilities and has played a vital role in the conflict in Ukraine its efficiency in neutralizing threats from a distance underscores the significance of this role in a modern conflict the Mig 31 has showcased the unique balance of speed power and strategic prowess demanded in the high stakes theater of Modern Warfare notably the Mig 31 has a much better climb rate at about 56,7 ft per minute and a Thrust the weight ratio of about 85 but what really sets the Mig 31 apart is the speed this is one of the fastest production aircraft ever assembled coming in at a top speed of about Mach 2.83 I did want to highlight two specific Innovations in this aircraft that really set this apart especially for the ERA this aircraft was first developed it was one of the first aircraft to have a phased array radar and it's one of two aircraft capable of firing longrange air-to-air missiles currently in operation this can be a huge Advantage especially in a contested airspace like over Ukraine for cost coming in at about $33 million inflation adjusted the Mig 31 gets a score of Seven For Speed as I mentioned earlier it's one of the fastest production aircraft ever manufactured and certainly one of the fastest currently in operation it gets a nine for versatility again this is a pretty potent part of the Russian military it gets a score of six for versatility not really having too many air-to-air capabilities however given its incredible speed and ability to fire from long ranges it gets a six and as I alluded to earlier the Mig 31 really stands out as far as Innovation goes with its implementation of phased array radar and its current implementation of weapons such as long range air-to-air missiles and notably recently with its ability to launch the Kinsel Hypersonic air launched ballistic missile it gets an eight for Innovation as for Effectiveness given its ability to really make a difference in contested airspace it gets a seven as well that gives the Mig 31 an overall score of a respectable 7.20 next up we have our first true air superiority aircraft we talk about today the MiG 29 the MiG 29 is the fourth gen fighter jet designed specifically for air superiority the MC 29's capabilities really have been tested in the Ukrainian conflict revealing both its strengths and its vulnerabilities it has a respectable max speed of Mach 2.25 its performance in Ukraine has really shed light on the fact that more advanced aircraft are really needed to navigate the complex nature of modern air combat for cost the mig29 comes in about $20 million inflation adjusted which makes sense when you look at the long list of aircraft operators such as you kistan Ukraine turkistan Syria Sudan Serbia Russia and the list goes on but overall about 1600 Mig 29s have been produced and sold by Russia and that's a pretty significant number for any aircraft platform especially considering fighter jets as mentioned earlier it's a pretty fast aircraft coming in at over Mack 2.25 gives it a speed score of eight also sporting a very sporty 65,000 feet per minute climb rates fantastic thrust to weight ratio of 1.09 it's clear the mig21 has some get up and go which is why the mig29 gets an eight for speed for versatility the MiG 29 has the ability to perform a wide range of roles including air superiority and ground operations it has respectable eight hard points for ground operations as mentioned earlier it has a good number of capabilities for versatility it has an okay combat range of about 800 90 mil that gives the versatility of the MiG 29 a score of seven for Innovation the MiG 29 has really shown itself in its maneuverability and speed as I mentioned the stats for Speed are self-evident however what really doesn't show up too much in the stats is the super maneuverability of the MiG 29 this is a very capable aircraft and its ability to navigates in close combat airspaces really shows itself but overall the M really Lacks in avionics and specific technological advancements there's not too much to report here and so ultimately the innovation has to get a seven but what really kills the mig29 score is its Effectiveness the mig29 really has a poor performance in combat record sporting only six air kills but 18 air to- a losses the downside of having such a highly produced aircraft is would be able to see it perform in a wide variety of theaters and it has not performed as well as Russia would have liked and that of course does not include the current conflict which are highly contested numbers but some reports indicate that Ukraine has lost at least 22 Mig 29s that gives the overall effectiveness of the MiG 29 a score of four this gives the MiG 29 an overall score of 6.35 next up we have another air superiority aircraft the Sue 27 another fourth generation fighter designed for air superiority the Sue 27's agility capabilities have really been demonstrated in the Ukrainian conflict it also has a similar top speed of around Mach 2.35 but unlike the mc29 it actually has a positive air-to-air combat ratio with more air-to-air kills than losses although some would say that this combat record is dubious at best given the fact that it was used in the Ethiopian Air Tran War and it was a very lopsided conflict let's just say despite the fact that the Sue 27's First Flight took place the same year as the mig29 it Sports a lot more developmental advances such as fly by wire this of course translated to a much more costlier platform coming in at about $47 million which is more than double what the m29 cost but also given the fact that it had much more advanced electronics and was generally seen as a more capable aircraft it scores a six on cost similar to the m 29 it has similar top speeds and a similar thrust to weight ratio of 1.07 it has a slightly lower climb rate than the mc29 does at 59,000 but pretty comparable All Things Considered that gives the Sue 27 a speed score of eight for versatility the Sue 27 has 10 hard points three more than the MiG 29 and is able to carry out a wide variety of roles such as air to ground attack and air superiority missions it is a similar combat range as the MiG 29 at about 930 Mi however the fairy range dwarfs the Mig 29's coming in at 2,190 Mi that gives the overall versatility of the suit 27 a score of seven as I alluded to earlier The Innovation on the 227 was also much more more advanced than the mig29 sporting equipment such as flyby wire and electronically steered array radar and more advanced early warning radar giving the s27 overall Innovation score of eight as for Effectiveness the su27 has the combat record to back it up although it hasn't been quite as produced as the MiG 29 this is more likely due to the fact that it is much more expensive of an aircraft but given its combat record has generally been untouched if you exclude the ongoing Ukrainian conflict of course that gives the su27 an Effectiveness score of eight but as more reports come in and become less disputed this may fluctuate that gives the su27 honestly a very respectable score of 7.6 next up we have the sue2 a close air support aircraft designed for ground attack missions the Sue 25's involvement in the Ukrainian conflict highlights its role as a Workhorse providing close air support for troops on the ground however it's decep ability to enemy air defenses underscores the evolving nature of Modern Warfare however it's susceptibility to enemy air defenses really highlights the fact that advanced aircraft are really essential to Modern air combat especially in a highly contested airspace with a near pure foe needless to say my research into the Sue 25's capabilities did not impress for instance it has an abysmal faery range of only 640 Mi it is one of the cheapest on this list but it also has the lowest ceiling of any aircraft on my ranking list to date it has one of the most disappointing combat records of any aircraft on this list as well sporting exactly zero air kills which shouldn't be expected of any attack aircraft but the fact that it has 61 ground losses shows how incredibly susceptible this aircraft is to enemy to any eny to any enemy air defenses the s25 of course is one of the most affordable aircraft on this list inflation adjusted coming in at about $1 million giving it a score of eight similar to other aircraft we've discussed previously on this list there's been over 1,000 aircraft produced and currently 192 in operation likely due to the fact that it is such an affordable aircraft as you may have guessed already by its air combat record the s25 is no speed demon it comes comes in at an approximate top speed of around Mach 0.79 that combined with its low climb rates and low thrust weight ratio of 0.62 that gives it a speed score of four for versatility this aircraft is pretty single-minded coming in really to do close air support in non-contested airspaces otherwise this aircraft is not much of an aircraft you want to rely on so it gets a score of three for versatility given the fact that it does have 11 hard points it does pretty much what it was intended to do for Innovation not too much to write home about sorry to anyone that likes the c25 I didn't see anything really of note to say for Innovation here so it gets a three and Effectiveness we've already pretty much harped enough on this point it is not a very effective aircraft I have to say looking at all the combat history the abilities of the s25 it kind of feels like Canon f for the Russian military and to anyone that purchased this aircraft it gets a three for Effectiveness giving the Su 25 a pretty py score of 3.35 I know if there's Sue 25 fans in the comments I'm going to hear it sorry guys next up we have the Sue 30 multi-roll air superiority fighter jet that was developed around the time when the F22 was also being developed just for context and it's within that context that we really start to see the gap between the Russian and the US Air Forces while the US Air Force was defining what it meant to be a fifth generation fighter with the entrance of the fifth generation with the F-22 and the introduction of stealth technology and a huge leap in engineering that it was the su3 really represents what it meant to be just an improved fourth generation fighter and that's not to say that the s30 doesn't have great features along with it for instance it has thrust vectoring nozzles that enable it to be a super maneuverable aircraft it has recorded seven air to a kills but on the downside it also has about 15 ground losses overall it's a pretty quick aircraft with a top speed of about Mach 2 but it features a disappointing climb rate about 45,000 ft per minute compared to the F22 which has a climb rate of about 69,000 ft per minute the 230 also features 12 hard points which makes it a pretty decent payload which gives it a pretty decent payload of about £8,000 lb for cost the suit3 comes in at about $35 million inflation adjusted which looks like a steal compared to the $177 million inflation adjusted price tag of the F-22 that gives the sue3 a score of eight on cost for Speed it's a pretty quick aircraft like I mentioned earlier top speed and Mach 2 but it loses a lot of points for its climb rates and relatively low thrust weight ratio compared to other aircraft in its class giving a speed score of six for versatility it's a pretty well-rounded aircraft with 12 hard points as I mentioned earlier and is able to perform a wide variety of combat roles this gives it a seven for versatility for Innovation as I mentioned it has a good number of Innovations but not as great as when you compare the F22 that had its first flight only a year after the S3's first flights but its phase the ray radar and thrust vectoring capabilities gives the s30 an overall score for innovation of seven for Effectiveness as I mentioned earlier it has an okay combat record with no air losses however about 15 ground losses and seven air kills which is notable given the fact that it is somewhat a modern aircraft and there are not too many modern aircraft that have any air-to-air combat history so seven air kills is nothing to look over that gives the overall F in the score of the S3 a seven that brings the weighted score of the S3 to a 6.95 the program for this aircraft was significantly delayed it initially started off is the s32 program and was kind of rolled into the s34 its first flight was in 1990 but didn't enter service until 2014 the delays in this program are kind of indicative of the Russian military in general and obviously the political instability that happened in the early '90s in Russia uh and with this aircraft finally entering service in 2014 reading between the lines you can see why Russia really wanted to update their old platforms and get some new avionics and electronic warfare on aat platform with some updated abilities and capabilities that being said this program really hasn't been as successful as you would expect for a somewhat modern Russian fighter its lack of stealth capabilities and survivability it's kind of evident in the fact that we've already seen at least 15 ground losses of the s34 for a modern fighter this actually comes in a pretty decent price at $36 million inflation adjusted that gives it an overall cost score of eight for Speed we actually see that the 234 kind of takes a little bit of a dive compared to other iterations of suco aircraft we see that it only has a top speed of Mach 1.8 and has a pretty bad thrust weight ratio reported at about 0.68 the climb rate leaves a lot to be desired too with about 45,000 compared to other contemporaries like the Euro Fighter which has a 62,000 ft per minute climb rate and the F22 which has a 69,000 000 ft per minute climb rate so the s34 may not be slow but it's certainly not the quickest fighter jet you've seen so it gets a six for speed for versatility this aircraft really stands out with its hard points Sports about 12 hard points and it has one of the highest payload capacities of any fighter or attack aircraft on this list at about 26,000 lb for Innovation this aircraft really doesn't impress there's not too much advances in technology especially for an aircraft to enter service in 2014 the AV ICS are outdated and it obviously shows its vulnerabilities and Innovation given the fact that it has had so many ground losses already it gets a four for Innovation for Effectiveness as I've mentioned earlier it really doesn't shine on the battlefield at all with 15 ground losses already for an aircraft that has barely seen any combat history at all but they have produced over 150 of them so it's not a complete failure of a program I would say it gets a four for Effectiveness that gives the suit 34 an overall score score of 5.30 next up we have the MC 35 which I kind of debated whether or not I would even bring this up but it is technically in operation in the Russian Air Force so I will mention it here even though there's only about six currently in operation and 10 manufactured ever this is another example of a Russian program that really doesn't look too good especially when you start looking into the history of the program there's already been one Runway incursion of this aircraft and has barely been in operation and like I said there's reportedly only about six in operation so that doesn't really bode well for the overall success of the program its specs also leave a lot to be desired uh although some of them are fairly impressive with one of Russia's highest climb rates at 65,000 ft per minute and a pretty good top speed at Mach 2.25 for the Mig 35 we do see an uptick in price costing about $48.6 million that gives the Mig 35 a cost score of 7 for Speed as I mentioned it's got a pretty impressive climb rate of about 655,000 ft per minute it's got a great top speed of Mach 2.25 so it gets an eight for Speed as far as versatility goes it seems kind of middle of the road it's combat range is kind of what you expect at a fighter attacker craft of this era coming in at about 620 miles the payload leaves a little bit to be desired coming in about 14,000 lb kind of on the lower end but as far as hard points there's about nine so it's not terrible not amazing so it gets a six for versatility for Innovation we start to see the implementation of a couple new technologies added to this platform with the phased array radar that it Sports but it also does not have some of the Staples of what makes Russian aircraft Innovative for instance it does not feature thrust vectoring like other Russian aircraft have besides the phas aray radar there's not a lot of innovation that's going into this aircraft it gets a four for Innovation for Effectiveness we really haven't seen it do too much in combat we haven't seen a lot of aircraft either so I can't give it too much more than a five on Effectiveness that gives the M 35 an overall score of 5.40 and finally we arrive at the Sue 35 the most abundant air superiority fighter jet in the Russian Air Force at this time the S35 has everything you would expect out of a fourth generation Fighter phas the raay radar thrust vectoring super maneuver ability overall it's a pretty decent aircraft its capabilities as a fourth generation fighter has landed it seven confirmed air kills making it one of the most successful Russian Platforms in operation today but despite the seven confirmed air kills in Ukraine it has lost at least three aircraft to Ukrainian forces due to ground fire and that does not include a friendly fire incident in which Russia shot down its own S35 with the surfac air missile by accident with this S35 we see a big jump in price with this aircraft costing at least $85 million which is pretty much what you expect out of a fifth generation fighter except exep you don't get the fifth generation aspects like stealth so definitely not a good value proposition here the S35 gets a score of three for cost similar to the Mig 35 the Sue 35's top speed is Mack 2.25 pretty quick aircraft with a decent climb rate again of 55,000 ft per minute giving the S35 an overall speed score of eight for versatility the S35 earns High marks with its abilities to perform in air-to-air combats and ground operations with its 12 hard points a decent combat range of 990 mil and a pretty great fairy range reported at 2800 miles for versatility the S35 gets an eight for Innovation the S35 scores a seven with all of the bells and whistles You' expect of a fourth generation fighter including phased array radar updated avionics and thrust vectoring for Effectiveness given the fact that we have seen confirmed kills in Ukraine has been a pretty difficult Fighter for the ukrainians to put up with it gets an eight for Effectiveness that gives the S35 an overall score of 7.45 and since this is the first time I'm bringing up the Su 57 on my channel I'm going to actually add it to our overall aircraft rankings now in the film this aircraft is introduced to be a much far superior aircraft than the F-18 Super Hornet and there are aspects that are certainly Superior than the F18 namely the fact that this is a fifth generation fighter which means it incorporates stealth technology whereas the F-18 only has limited stealth capabilities only slightly better than the F18 Hornet now something else that is actually on dramatic display is something called super manuverability now this is actually an aspect of aircraft in Russia that is actually slightly better than what we have here in the United States super maneuverability is the concept where basically you can take the aircraft and change it Direction on a dime I mean it is absolutely astounding to watch however the US has taken a totally different approach and we basically haven't even strived towards this capability but theoretically it can be an incredible advantage in a slow close air-to-air combat situation now the reason that the US hasn't developed super maneuverability in their aircraft is because the US military has prioritized long standoff ranges specifically Ally Beyond visual range for instance if you're in a dog fight between F22 and the s57 the F22 is going to fire before it even sees the s57 so you can do all the super maneuverability that you want but if you're 20 M out from the F22 and the F22 is already firing at you then it really doesn't matter what kind of maneuvers you do that being said in this movie We're actually able to see what's called super maneuverability in those Russian aircraft and it's especially on display because you are actually in a close air-to-air slow speed dog fight which is pretty cool to see on film and I actually really appreciate it because if you noticed in the previous Top Gun they did not use any Russian aircraft CU they actually used American aircraft which they called a MIG but it was actually just an F5 but without any further Ado let's go ahead and put up the SU 57 on our aircraft ranking list first for cost as all Russian aircrafts on this list I don't really have the most reliable of data but from what I can find it seems to be about $100 million so it gets about a four being pretty costly but for what you're getting it doesn't sound like that B of A price I don't really believe the price and for Speed I give it an eight because it does have super Cruise maneuverability reportedly and it actually is pretty quick and for versatility give it a seven because it is designed to be a multi-roll aircraft it includes a fair amount of external and internal stores and overall seems like a pretty decent aircraft based on stats alone for Innovation it is a very Innovative aircraft especially for being the first fifth generation fighter to come out of Russia but I will say it does seem to lag behind some of the Innovations of even the F22 and it is much much newer than the f 22 as well and for Effectiveness unfortunately it's going to have to get a three because as much money as the Russians have thrown at this program and as much as they like to tout this as the IND all be all of fifth generation Fighters it actually hasn't proven itself in pretty much any theater even though there's only been a handful of these developed some of them are still in testing phase and the ones that are actually in operation are still not even being used even where they would seem to be very important in a role such as Ukraine which begs the question are they truly effective as they like to say so overall I'm giving this airplane a 5.95 now that we've analyzed the Russian aircraft let's go ahead and dive into the US Fighters coming up first at number 12 is the av8b Harrier and although this is a historic aircraft as the Harrier was the first aircraft to be a jet and take off vertically and and vertically but it has very limited capabilities for instance this is only one of the two fighter jets on this list that cannot reach supersonic speeds coming in at the second slowest of any aircraft on this list with a top speed of only 673 mph the Harrier also Sports a pretty limited combat range at about 350 Mi and although it has an average payload capacity of about 9,200 lb it only has six hard points so so for me this was an easy last place and next on our list coming in at number 11 is the F5 tiger 2 the F5 has decidedly the least amount of thrust of any aircraft on this list coming in at a total thrust of only about 7,000 lb force and it also has the unfortunate title of being the slowest supersonic aircraft on this list it also has the worst range of any of these aircraft with a combat range of about 140 miles but on the plus side it does have a price tag of only a cool $2.1 million the next aircraft coming up I'm sure it's going to make a lot of people upset with me but coming in at number 10 is the A10 Thunderbolt the warthog has been an absolute Workhorse for the military it has been one of the best ground support aircraft in history which is why it might surprise a lot of people that it's this low on this list however the A10 is not meant to be an advanc fighter although it is incredibly piece of engineering built with Incredible multiple redundancies a titanium cockpit all these features are made to make it one of the best ground support aircrafts out there but the A10 has the unfortunate dishonor of being the slowest aircraft at this list clocking in a max speed of only about 439 mph and an abysmal climb rate of only 6,000 ft per minute the A10 does have a pretty good payload capacity at about 16,000 lb and it's tied for first for number of hard points with 11 hard points again lending itself to the incredible ground support aircraft that it is but with a combat range like 290 mph and a Thrust a weight ratio of 0.36 and a top speed that's the lowest on this list I'm sorry I had to give it 10 place don't hate me now deciding between the next two aircraft on this list was probably the most difficult decision that I had in the whole ranking process if anything some lists would probably just put these as a tie but I'm not going to do that not going to be a sellout coming in at number nine is the F18 Hornets so I am putting four different variants of the F18 hornet in this section at slot number nine however I'm not including the Super Hornet that's entirely another Beast so it's actually easy for me to put the F-18 above the previous aircraft because the F18 really is a step up it's the next caliber of fighter jet the F18 Hornet has a decent climb rate of about 50,000 F feet per minute and has a max speed of mock 1.8 and if you don't know what a mock number is make sure you check out my prior video where I explained what supersonic flight is and what a mock number is the F18 is also an incredibly versatile aircraft being that it was designed to be a carrier born aircraft and carry out an attack roll as well for ground support and like I alluded to earlier number eight is where it really starts to get tricky for me coming out at number eight the F16 fighting f now before I recorded this video I had actually asked my Instagram followers which aircraft they thought was better and I got a pretty decent debate between the F18 and the F-16 But ultimately looking at the numbers I had to go with the F16 there are a few reasons why the first being the F-16 has an incredible climb rate The Climb rate of the F-16 is 72,000 ft per minute squarely placing it in first place the F16 also has a slightly faster top speed at Mack 2.05 compared to the f-18s 1.8 the thrust the weight ratio of the F16 also edges out the F18 coming in at 1.95 and it has a larger payload capacity coming in at 177,000 lb compared to the f-18s 13,700 lb overall looking at the numbers I just felt the F-16 was slightly more maneuverable more agile and better nimble fighter than the F-18 which slightly edged it out for me so I did get some feedback on my in stagram after I posed the question there that the F18 is one of the best adversaries within visual range however I had to go with the F16 it really was revolutionary it was the very first aircraft was actually designed to be dynamically unstable making it incredibly maneuverable but like I said feel free to disagree with me down in the comments below I'm an aerospace engineer like I said I'm not a pilot so I've never flown either of these aircraft I don't have firsthand experience with them I'm just going by the Numbers here as a Navy brat I grew up adoring Naval Aviation I still do but while researching this video I gained a renewed appreciation for how incredible the Air Force aircraft really are coming in at number seven is the F-15 Eagle the F-15 is tied for the fastest aircraft on this list coming out at a top speed of Mach 2.5 it's a twin engine aircraft with each of those engines putting out 14,590 lb of thrust and a respect able Thruster weight ratio of 1.07 it is the single greatest combat range of any of the aircraft on this list coming at over 1200 miles coming in at number six should be no surprise to anyone but it's younger brother the f-15e Strike Eagle this re-engined F-15 has the same top speed of about Mach 2.5 but gives out a Thrust of over 17,800 lb it does take a small hit on its combat range coming in at 79 9 1 miles as opposed to the 1200 of the previous variants however it still comes in at second best on the entire list couple that with the fact that it gives the second best total thrust of any of these aircraft coming in at 35,000 lb coming in at number five is the aircraft I had dreamed ever since I was a little kid that I would be able to fly in but my hopes are dashed when I realized that I did not have 2020 Vision in both eyes the F18 Super Hornet the F-18 sports brand new engines increasing its thrust and allowing it to have even more hard points clocking in an 11 hard points it puts up respectable numbers for top speed maneuverability and all those other metrics however what really sets it apart is it's newly reduced radar cross-section its avionics and its versatility in fact the reason that I put the F-18 above the F-15 exclusively is because the F-15 was only designed to be an air superiority fighter while the F-18 was designed with a variety of missions in mind at its core the F-18 Super Hornet is a carrier born aircraft and as such it has to perform a variety of tasks such as attack missions fighter missions air-to-air combat roles it really has to be a jack of all trades for me that's what really put it above the F-15 in my mind and if you're very familiar with military fighter jets you may be asking yourself are there still even four more fighter jets out there and to answer that question coming in at number four three and two are the F35 lightning the reason that the F35 comes in three different places is because it comes in the a b and c variant which all have very different capabilities coming in at number four is the f35b the Marine variant although the Marine variant is the only one that has STV capability or short takeoff vertical Landing capability it takes a huge hit on Range because of it the f35b has the shortest fairy range of any of the aircraft on this lists coming on only 900 Mi meanwhile the combat range is not much better coming in at only 550 Mi and that's the reason that I put it below the other variants of the F35 however the F35 as a whole is still clearly a top tier aircraft all of the F35 variants feature thrust vectoring all aspect stealth Advanced avionics and a payload capacity that allows this aircraft to stand out above the crowd the f35b however has the lowest payload capacity coming in at only 15,000 lb while the other F35 variants come in at 18,000 lb of payload capacity coming in at number three is the f-35a the Air Force variant of the F-35 the reason that I put the f-35a here is because although it does have almost the same exact combat range as the F35 CC the Navy variant it severely lacks in its versatility coming in at number two the F-35 see the Navy variant is able to be a carrier born aircraft in other words it can fold its wings and it can deploy and land from an aircraft carrier this greatly enhances the f-35's ability to perform a variety of combat roles such as attack missions and air-to-air combat and finally without any further Ado we have the single greatest aircraft in the single greatest air force in the entire world the F22 Raptor [Music] should be no surprise here for anyone who's familiar with Aviation because the F22 is unparalleled it has by far the best maneuverability thrust vectoring all aspects stealth it was the first fifth generation fighter ever it has an incredible climb rate of a 69,000 ft per minute it has a max speed of about 2.25 the F22 has the lowest aspect ratio on this list making it one of the most maneuverable aircraft ever conceived but its total thrust is what really sets the F-22 apart it has the greatest thrust of any fighter jet ever coming in at over 52,000 lbs of thrust now that we've analyzed all the US fighter jets let's go ahead and dive into the Chinese fighter jets so without any further Ado let's go ahead and get into the rankings of all the Chinese operational fighter jets so in order from oldest to newest aircraft we have the chungu j7 coming in at about $25 million reportedly giving it a cost score of seven as for Speed it also gets a seven coming in at a top speed of Mach 2 having a low climb rate but given the fact that it's pretty old this doesn't hurt it as much and the j7 scores a four for versatility given its low amount of hard points It's relatively short range of about 530 mil and for Innovation it scores a three since it's basically a copy of the mig21 with a few modifications and for Effectiveness it scores a five due to the fact that it has been a cost effective option for a lot of foreign militaries outside of China it also actually happens to be the only operational Chinese fighter jet that has seen any air-to-air combat with one air-to-air kill and zero losses so technically it's undefeated this gives the j7 an overall score of 4.40 next up we have the j8 but I couldn't find a reliable cost estimate so I'll just have to give this a five for Speed it gets a respectable seven being pretty much on par with the j7 for versatility is scores of five given the fact that they increased the number of hard points from the previous j7 increased the range a little bit The Climb rate and the cealing of the aircraft and for Effectiveness it scores of four as it hasn't proven to be quite as Hardy as this predecessor the j7 that gives the j8 an overall score of 4.65 slightly edging it over the j7 next we have the Shion jh7 again I couldn't find Reliable data as for our cost so again I'll have to give it to Five For Speed it's going to get four since it's below average and slightly slower than its near Pier foes for versatility it's going to have to get a three given the fact that it only has six hard points extremely limited range a fairly low low ceiling and a pretty low climb rate as well for Innovation it gets a four due to the fact that it mimics many of the capabilities the F-111 except in a much worse way and a long time after the Advent of the f111 and lastly for Effectiveness it gets a three due to the fact that it suffered severe technological mishaps even from the very first flight that gives the Shion jh7 a pretty bad score of 3.50 next up we have the shanyang j11 coming in at the cost score of six due to the fact that it's a fairly affordable aircraft for its price and capabilities for Speed it gets a solid eight because of its top speed of Mach 2.35 and a pretty good respectable climb rate of 59,000 ft per minute for versatility you gets a seven due to its 10 hard points much improved range from other aircraft in their Fleet High thrust to weight ratio and great maneuver ability for Innovation it gets a six since it pretty much is an su27 but they did add some slight modifications especially in the j1b although the j11 still hasn't seen combat it has proven to be a pretty reliable platform giving it a score for effectiveness of seven this gives the Shenyang j11 an overall score of 6.75 next we have the chungu J10 scoring an eight for cost a seven for Speed being a pretty quick aircraft with a great thrust away ratio for versatility the J10 gets a score of six being slightly above average for things such as its 11 hard points for inovation it gets a five being a fairly decent aircraft but nothing really pushing the envelope of aerospace engineering and for Effectiveness given its high number of hard points it's high thrust to weight ratio and fairly decent climb rates one would expect it to perform pretty well in combat scenario that gives the chungu J10 an overall score of 6.15 next up we have the shanyang j15 j15 scores a nine for Speed being the fastest aircraft in the Chinese fleets and having the best climb rate of any of the Chinese spider jets for versatility gets a seven because of its 12 hard points and the fact that it's a carrier born aircraft although it gets a four for Innovation due to the fact that it relies so heavily on foreign technology and for Effectiveness it gets a three due to its severe operational challenges another Telltale sign of the fact that this hasn't been an effective platform for them is only 6 years after its first flight they're already talking about completely replacing specifically for the fact that it's such a heavy aircraft it severely limits its payload capacity when it's launching from a carrier next we have the shanyang j16 coming at a score of five for cost again cuz I haven't found the cost for Speed it gets an eight being a pretty quick aircraft again coming in at the top speed of mock 2 for versatility it gets a seven due to the fact that it has 12 Heart points a decent payload capacity and his incredibly maneuverable similar to the J for Innovation it gets a four again because it is such a new aircraft and it really hasn't Advanced anything relying so heavily on the foreign technology as we discussed previously for Effectiveness it gets a five being a decent aircraft so far nothing too crippling to report operational wise but again it hasn't been able to really prove itself either and finally we have the pride of the Chinese air fleet their only fifth generation fighter and probably the best fifth generation fighter outside the United States coming in at the price tag of over $110 million that gives it a cost score of three it gets a speed score of eight being the fact that it has a top speed of mock 2 for versus gets an eight for its stealth capabilities and it's six internal hard points it has the best range of any fighter jet in the Chinese air fleet coming in at 1200 mil for combat range for Innovation the J10 gets an eight due to the fact that we're actually starting to see what looks like China developing its own fifth generation fighter and one that's actually seemingly more capable than its counterpart in Russia making it the third country to ever bring a fifth generation fighter to production for Effectiveness it gets a seven due to its reduced radar cross-section and the capabilities previously mentioned that gives the j20 an overall score of 7.50 now let's dive into the European manufactured fighter jets which brings us to our first aircraft on our list the doo Mirage 2000 now the Mirage 2000 was designed as a lightweight replacement to the Mirage 3 but in my opinion it really doesn't bring any new advancements or updates in technology no leaps and Innovation so really it kind of disappointed in that regard it's a fair price at about $30 million giving a score of seven a top speed of Mack 2.2 earns it a score of seven on speed it's nine hard points and about 2,000 M of fery range earn it a decent score of seven for versatility but as I mentioned earlier its Innovation leaves something to be desired giving it only a score of five it is however the most produced aircraft on our list today at over 600 units produced it has a wide variety of operators across the globe it however doesn't have as much air combat history scoring only one air-to-air kill and one ground loss giving it an effectivity score of seven next up also from Doo its first flight was in 1986 the doo Rafal this one's primary operators are France and Greece and there a Quantum Leap in price at over $15 million however you're getting a lot more bang for your buck and that price tag unfortunately earns it only a on cost and although its top speed is slightly slower than the Mirage 2000 it has a top Cruise speed of 1.4 meaning it has super Cruise capabilities which means it gets a higher speed score at eight while researching these statistics that was blown away by the numbers that were fall the third best combat range of any aircraft on the fighter jet list 14 hardpoints which is the most of any fighter jet I've seen by the Numbers this should be the most versatile fighter jet I've seen I started looking at the technology I noticed that it had a phase the r radar it had super Cruise it was checking all of the boxes but then I started to look a little bit closer although it does currently have a phased array radar this was a later modification and unfortunately one thing that opened my eyes was I found out that in 2002 the raal was actually prevented from conducting air to ground operations for literally 5 years 5 years where the French air force needed the raal to conduct air to ground operations where it just couldn't and so unfortunately I had to give versatil the score of seven so as I mentioned earlier the phase the ra radar and many of the advancements on the raal were only added in later modifications so unfortunately for Innovation I also had to give the Rafal a seven it has had a fairly successful production run at over 200 units and has sold pretty well to various Nations however hasn't had any air-to-air combat history to speak of so scores a six for effectivity next up we have our sweetest friends with the Saab JIS 39 griin inside of Europe This aircraft flies for the Czech Republic Sweden the UK Hungary and a variety of countries outside of Europe as well what I love about this aircraft is it's literally Ikea for Air Forces and it's exactly what you would get for quality for a cheap airplane for air forces that can't afford higher quality but it's still stylish and some assembly required so coming in at about $30 million the gripin gets an eight for cost it is the respectable top speed of Mach 2 giving a speed score of seven the gripin 10 hard points and subpar combat range give it a six for versatility and just like you're running mil Ikea fiture it's nothing to wrent home about for Innovation it's pretty much as standard as they come it gets a five average and again no combat history here to speak of but it has sold decently well for Saab and has proven to be a good production aircraft and a great budget aircraft for countries that may not be able to afford all the bells and whistles so next up we have the Bae hairer 2 but we've actually already ranked that one in our US aircraft fighter jet rankings so I'm not going to go over too much detail about that one but I will recap the score for you real quick for cost it gets a six for Speed gets a three versatility it got a five for Innovation it got a seven for effectivity it got a four and its overall score was a 5.2 and like I said if you want to learn more about that make sure you check out my video talking about the US fighter jets ranked last but certainly not least was the Euro Fighter typhoon this was a multinational design effort with the likes of Leonardo Bae and Airbus which were Italian British and French companies respectively the prim Prim operators of the typhoon are now the UK Germany Italy and Spain the typhoon definitely comes with the price tag at over $124 million giving it a score of two on cost but it definitely is fast and it has super Cruise as well so it gets an eight on speed for versatility it has 13 hard points and is able to perform a variety of functions from Air superiority to air to ground operations so it gets an eight for versatility as well not only does this air craft have super cruise but it also has a phased array radar and has a reduced radar cross-section this is certainly one of the most advanced aircraft in the world and although it's not a fifth generation aircraft nor is it all aspect stealth it incorporates radar absorbing materials known as RAM to reduce its radar cross-section this is why some would classify this aircraft as a fourth plus generation instead of just a fourth generation aircraft so now that we've done all the analyses and all the operational fighter and attack aircraft let's see how they rank against each other on their ultimate ranking list at the bottom of our list we have the Sue 25 followed by the jh7 the changu j7 then the Shenyang j8 followed by the Harrier the Shenyang j15 the F5 tiger 2 the Sue 34 the Mig 35 the Sue 24 the A10 Thunderbolt the j16 the Sue 57 the J10 the grien the MiG 29 The Mirage 2000 the Rafal the j11 the F-18 Hornet the Sue 30 in 21st place now we crack the top 20 with the make 31 the Euro Fighter typhoon the Sue 35 the j20 the Sue 27 the F16 the f-15e the F-18 Super Hornet the F-15 Eagle followed by all three F35 lightning variants and up top the F22 Raptor my ranking videos always seem to generate a lot of conversation in the comment section so let me know how wrong you think I am down in the comments below thank you so much for watching this video it was a lot of work to make I really hope you enjoyed it I hope you found some value in it if you did find any value in it please consider subscribing to the channel thank you so much for watching this video and godp [Music] speed [Music] [Music] [Music]
