The Ten Fastest Fighter Jets In The World, India Is Not On This List

You may think that weaponry is the single most important feature on fighter jets, but it is far from the truth. Speed also plays a crucial part in the outcome of the fight. If you are wondering which military jet is the fastest in the world, here is the answer.

10. Chengdu J-10

The Chinese call them Chengdu and NATO names them Firebird. They are currently in use in the People‘s Liberation Army Air Force. Five years after their test flight in 1998, Chengdu J-10 was introduced into service. After several tests and changes in the design, the jet became a multirole aircraft. Its number is now 350, making Chengdu J-10 the most popular model in its home country. With the speed of 2,336 km/h, Chengdu J-10 is the fastest in China.

9. Dassault Mirage 2000

The Dassault Mirage 2000 was designed in France, and until now, their total number is 601. Reaching 2,336 km/h, this fighter jet is the fastest model the French have ever built.

When the country government decided to withdraw from the Panavia Tornado project, they had come up with their own standards for a military jet, and at that time, Dassault’s design was the perfect match for what the Air Force if France expected.

This military jet is still in service in many countries all over the world.

8. Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor

Achieving a top speed of 2,410 km/h, Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor was brought into service in 2005 with the US Air Force. In 2011, this project was canceled due to the lack of enemies, higher costs, and the arrival of the F-35. There was a suggestion to bring it back to life in 2016, but Congress rejected it due to the rising costs of making the F-22.

7. Sukhoi Su-57

Sukhoi Su-57 is a newer design than the two above fighter jets. It has not been in service yet as the implementation of new engines calls for further tests. Last year, a video recording the fighter jet in Syria was released. It is believed that Sukhi Su-57 can reach a speed of 2,440 km/h.

6. Eurofighter Typhoon

This is the project that France pulled out in the last minute to invest in its own Dassault Mirage. When asked about the fighter jet, all pilots who had taken part in the tests said that it was easy to control and very agile. The Eurofighter Typhoon’s first fight was in 2011 when they took part in a military intervention in Libya.

5. Sukhoi Su-27

When the US’s F-X program was introduced, the Soviet Union realized that their fighter jets would soon become obsolete when the F-15 arrived. Later, the Soviet General Staff announced the requirements for a new jet. Since they are too high, the Soviets has to divide the demand into two. The first one was a lightweight military jet, and the second was the exact opposite.

As a result, the former requirement led to the creation of the MiG-29 while the latter became the Sukhoi Su-27 with the top speed of 2496 km/h. This fighter jet was called Flanker-A by NATO and T-10 in Sukhoi.

This jet is still in service in some countries in the world. The US even keeps four of them for pilot training.

4. McDonnell Douglas F-15

The McDonnell Douglas F-15 was created at the time of the Vietnam War. To cut costs, both the US Air Force and Navy were asked to make use of the same aircraft. After a few months of looking into the requirements, the US decided that the top two features of the jet should be lightweight and maneuver.

McDonnell Douglas was entrusted with creating the fastest jet at that time, which could fly at the speed of 2,665 km/h. The jet did make it in time for battles in Vietnam as the war ended in 1975.

The US is still making these jets, and the responsibility belongs to McDonnell Douglas, and later Boeing.

3. MiG-31

As the MiG-25 was getting old, the Mikoyan design bureau came up with the MiG-31 to replace it. It is called Foxhound by NATO. However, both jets shared a lot of standard features.

MiG-31 production was discontinued in 1994, but the remaining ones are still in service, and the Russian Defense Ministry plans to keep them until 2030.

The MiG-25 had lots of advantages over its enemies, but it had to sacrifice the maneuverability to achieve them. MiG-31 was supposed to do everything its predecessor can and even more. After it was introduced to service, it soon became a revolutionary model. The MiG-31 was also one of the first to have a phased array radar system onboard.

There are not many aircraft in the world that can fire long-range air-to-air missiles like this one. Coupled with a speed of 2,993 km/h, MiG-31 packs serious power with it.

2. F-15 Strike Eagle

This F-15 is totally different from the one we read about earlier. This Strike Eagle was given far better specifications with a speed of 3,017 km/h; however, it is not to replace its younger brother. In 1985, McDonnell Douglas started making the first Strike Eagles. After a handful of changes, the US Air Force was delivered the first jet in 1988. The Strike Eagle F-15 is still in production by both Boeing and McDonnell Douglas. There are 420 of them have been produced.

1. Fastest fighter jet – MiG-25

And here is what we have been waiting for, the fastest fighter jet of the year 2019. It is from Russia and also one of the last designs of Mikhail Gurevich before his retirement. It was built to intercept any spying attempt from NATO.

At first, the West considered MiG-25 a perfect jet, but after Viktor Belenko, a Soviet pilot defected to the US, they found out that the jet had lots of flaws. Its weight means that the MiG-25 has to have large wings and it cannot be maneuvered as quickly as the West first thought. The big wings were not intended to be for nimbleness but to carry the weight.

The MiG-25 was first tested in 1964, and it was in service since 1970. After two decades, from 1964 to 1984, Mikoyan-Gurevich put an end to the production. So far, 1,186 fighter jets were produced, and each of them can reach a speed of 3,089 km/h.