Aircraft can be classified according to their use:
1. Attack aircraft
Attack aircraft are essentially aircraft designed with the objective of ground attack, to provide friendly troops with close-air-support(CAS), i.e. helping to destroy 'problematic' units like armored vehicles or dug-in troop concentrations which would give a hard time to friendly troops. These aircraft are characterized with having a long endurance and loiter time over the battlefield to give the quickest response to help troops under fire. A good example of such aircraft is the US A-10 Thunderbolt II (nickname Warthog). It has an awesome gun (the GAU-8 Avenger Gatling gun) which can chew tanks to pieces and hardpoints carrying various types of weapons for its mission. It also has two turbofan engines which give it an excellent loiter time, and is robust and tough enough to absorb battle damage. Without proper antiair, no ground commander can feel safe with one of these flying around.
A-10 Thunderbolt II
2. Bomber aircraft
Bomber aircraft can be divided into two kinds of aircraft:
i)Tactical Bomber (Fighter-Bomber)
ii)Strategic Bomber
Tactical fighter-bombers are mainly used to destroy the enemy's warfighting infrastructure on the battlefield. An example of this is the US F-105 Thunderchief used in the Vietnam War and the F-111 Aardvark. The Russian Tu-22M Backfire may also be considered as an example.
Strategic bombers are used to destroy the enemy's infrastructure behind the battlefield. The well-known B-52 Stratofortress is a good example. Newer strategic bombers are the B-1B Lancer, the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber and the Russian Tu-160 Blackjack.
These bombers can be characterized by having a long range and for some, cruising at high altitude. They are also usually not as agile as fighters due to their heavy bombload and weight. As such, without proper planning and support they can be sitting ducks for AAA (Anti-Aircraft Artillery) or enemy fighters.
F-111 Aardvark
B-52 Stratofortress
3. Cargo aircraft
Cargo aircraft... carry cargo. They are used to help transport supplies over terrain which would be hard for normal ground transports to traverse, i.e. mountains, desert, etc. Cargo aircraft can also ferry the cargo quicker than by ground or sea.
They can sometimes serve an offensive purpose as well, by airdropping paratroopers or, in the case of the C-130 Hercules, drop the largest conventional bomb in the world, the GBU-43/B MOAB (Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb, or Mother Of All Bombs).
Cargo aircraft, like bombers, usually have high payload capacity and is of similar layout and shape with normal large passenger commercial aircraft. Some, like the C-5 Galaxy, have a massive lift capacity, with one C-5 being able to transport 2 MBTs(Main Battle Tanks). Others focus more on versatility, with the C-17 Globemaster III as a good example, being able to operate from unimproved front-line airstrips only 1 km long.
In today's wars, logistics play a vital role in deciding the outcome of a military action. Cargo aircraft serve such a purpose, for a commander who can quickly supply his army with the necessary equipment and supplies has the advantage.
C-17 Globemaster III
C-130 Hercules
This is a long article, so this post will be continued. Right now, pls enjoy first.
4 comments:
The C-5 has been operated by US since 1969,are C-5 still work today or it was upgrade by US?
Yes, C-5s are still at work today serving the US Air Mobility Command. They are apparently undergoing modernisation that gives it improved engines, stronger airframes and better pressurisation systems. They will be flying well into the 21st century.
The F/A-22 is so cool!!!! Is it the most advance fighter aircraft in the world now?
Currently fighter technology is classified as being first, second, third, fourth or fifth-generation tech. Until now, the only two fifth-generation fighters (that is the most advanced) are the USA's F-22 and the F-35. It's a bit hard to compare the two as their strengths lie in different places; the F-22 more on high-performance, the F-35 more on versatility.
However, other 5th-generation fighters are in development in other countries; the Russian Sukhoi PAK FA, the Chinese J-XX, and the Indian Medium Combat Aircraft.
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