Greatest Fighter Aircraft of All Time - Page 27 - Aircraft of World War II

SoD Stitch · 03-17-2009, 12:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drgondog

If you were engaged by an F-22 none of those attributes would help you - even if you could out turn it (unlikely) or out run it. You have to see it - by eyeball or radar.

If eyeball, you are in component pieces already and you don't see it by radar.

I'm not sure what the standard is for 'Best' but subjectively the F-15 gets my modern vote.

Put simply: The F-22 does not have a combat record, the F-15 does. If and when the F-22 puts 105 enemy fighters in the ground, THEN it can make the claim to be the greatest fighter of all time. Until then, the F-15 is tops.

BTW, there is awesome video in another thread concerning the F-15; I watch the video just because I love looking at the -15, especially in action. It's kind of like the Lamborghini Countach: even 30+ years on, it still looks really good. Go here for the video.

imalko · 03-17-2009, 05:45 AM

MiG-29 and Su-27 are not matched to F-15?!
I cant agree with that.
And french Rafalle is one generation above F-15 in rang with F-22, Eurofighter Typhoon and Grippen.

thunderbird · 07-10-2009, 06:53 PM

newbie has an opinion. This site is terrible for someone like me addicted to everything about fighters. Best is an open definition especially when comparing different generations. Some of the very best airplanes aren't on the list. And each generation has its best.

I like the Hawker Tempests as the best of the active WWII aircraft, fast, powerful, tough and able to climb out of the energy hole better than any other wwII fighter, and armed to the teeth with 4 20mm cannons. If you get to choose your ride in a dogfighting game, go with the Tempest. Now an F2G with 4 20mm and the R4360 would have been an interesting ride, but it was too late for the war, and that big engine compromised its carrier performance a little.

In Korea, the F-86 flew well, but was underwhelming with its retention of .50 calibre machine guns. The Mig15 outclimbed the F-86 and was better armed with its 37 mm cannon.

In the cold war era, no one can argue with the effectiveness of the F-4 as a combat platform. The Mig21 was a better dogfighter, but its short legs meant that the Mig was bailing out of the fight and then shortly after, the pilot was bailing out as the Mig couldn't get away from the last missile shot. Performance-wise none of the planes really stuck out as superior . The Israelis used their Mirages and Kfirs as dogfighers, but their F-4s were also effective in the air-to-air combat.

In the seventies, the F-15 was King, the F-14 with its phoenix missile sytem (which was never used in combat by the Navy?) was Queen of BVR. The F-16 was a great airplane in close visual combat ranges but its radar is silly weak. And then the Russians developed the Mig-29 and the Sukhoi-27. Give me a choice and I will take the Sukhoi into vr combat with any airplane in the world.

Now The F-22 can lay calim to some amazing capability, almost 80kLb of thrust in an F-15 sized body will allow some amazing things. But its aero is compromised and who knows how well it will slash in vr. But in BVR, even if the enemy radar picks one up, the missile radar is unlikey to be able to home in on one. and in vr, I'll take a Sukhoi please.

View Poll Results: Which is the best
Sabre F-86	6	4.38%
Mig 21 Fishbed	6	4.38%
Mig 15	4	2.92%
Spitfire	29	21.17%
FW-190	18	13.14%
P-51	27	19.71%
Harrier	2	1.46%
F-15 Eagle	30	21.90%
Sopwith Camel	2	1.46%
Fokker DR1	5	3.65%
F4-Phantom	8	5.84%
Voters: 137. You may not vote on this poll

03-17-2009, 05:45 AM	#392
imalko Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Vojvodina, Serbia Posts: 1,306	MiG-29 and Su-27 are not matched to F-15?! I cant agree with that. And french Rafalle is one generation above F-15 in rang with F-22, Eurofighter Typhoon and Grippen. __________________ "Find your enemy and shoot him down - everything else is unimportant." Last edited by imalko; 03-17-2009 at 02:37 PM.

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07-10-2009, 06:53 PM	#393
thunderbird Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 3	newbie has an opinion. This site is terrible for someone like me addicted to everything about fighters. Best is an open definition especially when comparing different generations. Some of the very best airplanes aren't on the list. And each generation has its best. I like the Hawker Tempests as the best of the active WWII aircraft, fast, powerful, tough and able to climb out of the energy hole better than any other wwII fighter, and armed to the teeth with 4 20mm cannons. If you get to choose your ride in a dogfighting game, go with the Tempest. Now an F2G with 4 20mm and the R4360 would have been an interesting ride, but it was too late for the war, and that big engine compromised its carrier performance a little. In Korea, the F-86 flew well, but was underwhelming with its retention of .50 calibre machine guns. The Mig15 outclimbed the F-86 and was better armed with its 37 mm cannon. In the cold war era, no one can argue with the effectiveness of the F-4 as a combat platform. The Mig21 was a better dogfighter, but its short legs meant that the Mig was bailing out of the fight and then shortly after, the pilot was bailing out as the Mig couldn't get away from the last missile shot. Performance-wise none of the planes really stuck out as superior . The Israelis used their Mirages and Kfirs as dogfighers, but their F-4s were also effective in the air-to-air combat. In the seventies, the F-15 was King, the F-14 with its phoenix missile sytem (which was never used in combat by the Navy?) was Queen of BVR. The F-16 was a great airplane in close visual combat ranges but its radar is silly weak. And then the Russians developed the Mig-29 and the Sukhoi-27. Give me a choice and I will take the Sukhoi into vr combat with any airplane in the world. Now The F-22 can lay calim to some amazing capability, almost 80kLb of thrust in an F-15 sized body will allow some amazing things. But its aero is compromised and who knows how well it will slash in vr. But in BVR, even if the enemy radar picks one up, the missile radar is unlikey to be able to home in on one. and in vr, I'll take a Sukhoi please.