Fighter Ace Planes Inventory

From The Air Combat Wiki

Contents 1 Overview 2 Theater List 3 Fighter Aircraft 3.1 US Fighters 3.2 GB Fighters 3.3 SU Fighters 3.4 GE Fighters 3.5 JP Fighters 4 Bomber and Transport Aircraft 4.1 US Bombers and Transports 4.2 GB Bombers and Transports 4.3 SU Bombers and Transports 4.4 GE Bombers and Transports 4.5 JP Bombers and Transports 5 See Also

Overview

Fighter Ace includes 107 player-flyable aircraft in its inventory, including fighters, bombers and transport planes. This page lists all 107 plane models with links to their individual pages, sorted by their availability dates.

Theater List

The combat theaters that the plane served in are listed in parenthesis after the plane name. Theater limitations are used in the Fighter Ace Campaign Rules.

The theaters of operation are:

Pac = Pacific Theater

Med = Mediterranean Theater

West = Western Europe

East = Eastern Front

Post = Post War (used only in Korean War or "What If?" scenarios)

Fighter Aircraft

Fighters have one primary purpose - to destroy enemy aircraft. However, as more powerful engines have been developed and the load carrying capacity of fighters has increased, they have been converted into figher-bombers, capable of being used in both the anti-air and anti-ground roles.

US Fighters

The overriding philosophy of US plane designers was that the crew survivability came ahead of all other considerations. This means that US planes are generally more durable than planes in the same class from other countries. This durability comes at the cost of maneuverability and in general US fighters should stick to Boom & Zoom (Energy) tactics rather than trying to Turn Fight with the enemy.

Fighters introduced after 1942 tend to be equipped with turbo-superchargers for exceptional performance at high altitudes where these planes will obtain their best speeds. Lacking the need to intercept heavily armored bombers, US pilots preferred the standard armament of six wing-mounted Browning .50 caliber machine guns and only a few US fighters are equipped with cannon.

Ground support was an important element of US Army and Navy air doctrine and therefore all US fighters are capable of carrying at least one bomb. By 1943 both the Navy and Army were experimenting with air-to-ground rockets and late war fighters are all capable of carrying at least six 5” rockets in place of, or in combination with, the plane’s bomb load.

Dec 1940 - Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat (Navy) (Pac, Med, West)

Mar 1941 - Bell P-39D Airacobra (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

Jun 1941 - Curtiss P-40C Tomahawk (Army) (Pac, Med)

Dec 1941 - Curtiss P-40E Warhawk (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

Jun 1942 - Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat (Navy) (Pac, Med, West)

Jul 1942 - Chance-Vought F4U-1A Corsair (Navy) (Pac)

Aug 1942 - Lockheed P-38G Lightning (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

Jan 1943 - Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat (Navy) (Pac)

Jun 1943 - Republic P-47D Thunderbolt (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

Dec 1943 - Chance-Vought F4U-1C Corsair (Navy) (Pac)

Mar 1944 - North American P-51D Mustang (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

Apr 1944 - Lockheed P-38L Lightning (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

Nov 1944 - Chance-Vought F4U-4 Corsair (Navy) (Pac)

Jun 1945 - Chance-Vought F4U-4C Corsair (Navy) (Post)

GB Fighters

When the war started the RAF was blessed with the Supermarine Spitfire, the plane that would serve as the predominant fighter in its inventory into the post-war years. Small, fast and agile, the Spitfire is capable of excelling at both Boom & Zoom and Turn Fighting tactics. However, this performance came at the cost of keeping weight down, which meant less armor protection and shorter range.

The Hawker Hurricanes soldiered into the middle of the war and although it was obsolescent, it was turned into a potent anti-tank gun platform. However, it was soon replaced by the company’s Typhoon and Tempest designs. Powered by the 24-cylinder Napier Sabre engine these planes were very fast and rugged, but performance died off at high altitude, relegating the planes to low altitude attack and defense duties.

Mar 1938 - Hawker Hurricane Mk IA (Pac, Med, West)

Dec 1938 - Supermarine Spitfire Mk IA (Pac, Med, West)

Sep 1940 - Grumman Martlet Mk I (Pac, Med, West)

Feb 1941 - Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk Vb (Pac, Med, West)

Apr 1941 - Curtiss Tomahawk Mk IIB (Pac, Med, West)

Apr 1941 - Hawker Hurricane Mk IIC (Pac, Med, West)

Aug 1941 - Supermarine Spitfire FS Mk Vb (Pac, Med)

Sep 1941 - Hawker Hurricane Mk IID (Med)

Sep 1941 - Hawker Typhoon Mk IB (West)

Oct 1941 - Curtiss Kittyhawk Mk IA (Pac, Med, West)

Jul 1942 - Supermarine Spitfire F Mk IXc (Pac, Med, West)

Aug 1942 - Supermarine Seafire F Mk IIIb (Navy) (Pac, Med, West)

Apr 1943 - Supermarine Spitfire F Mk IXe (Pac, Med, West)

Apr 1944 - Supermarine Spitfire F Mk XIVe (West)

Jun 1944 - Hawker Tempest F Mk V Series II (West)

SU Fighters

Limited by the performance of available engines, Soviet designers relied on light weight and careful streamlining to obtain high-performance fighters. This problem was exacerbated by the shortage of raw materials necessary to make extensive use of metal alloys in aircraft construction, resulting in extensive use of wooden components, which sometimes were not as strong as they should be.

Realizing that roll rate was a critical component of modern air fighting, designers generally avoided using wing-mounted guns. However the small size of the planes and the overriding need to keep weight down meant that the armament was usually limited to a single engine-mounted 20 mm cannon and either one or two machine guns in the cowl.

Possessing the best attack plane of the war, there was less of a need for fighters to carry bombs and so bomb capacity lagged that of the fighters of other countries. However, the Soviets made extensive use of air-to-ground rockets and almost all fighters are capable of carrying four to six of the 66 lb. RS-82s. While the Hurricane and P-40 planes provided under lend-lease added nothing remarkable to their inventory, the P-39 Airacobra, which was hated by American pilots, became a potent ground attack and anti-tank fighter in the hands of Russian pilots.

Jun 1939 - Polikarpov I-16/28 Ishak (Pac, East)

Mar 1941 - Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-3 (East)

Jun 1941 - Lavochkin LaGG-3 Series 4 (East)

Feb 1942 - Hawker Hurricane Mk IIB (East)

Mar 1942 - Curtiss P-40E-1A Kittyhawk (East)

Oct 1942 - Yakovlev Yak-1B Series 2 (East)

Mar 1943 - Lavochkin La-5FN (East)

Apr 1943 - Bell P-39Q Airacobra (East)

Oct 1943 - Yakovlev Yak-3 (Pac, East)

Apr 1944 - Yakovlev Yak-9U (Pac, East)

May 1944 - Lavochkin La-7 (Pac, East)

Mar 1945 - Yakovlev Yak-9UT (Pac, East)

GE Fighters

The famous Messerschmitt Bf-109 served as Germany’s predominant fighter from the first days of the war to the last. Continually up-engined and seeing a major revision after the Emil, it always possessed a great climb rate but was also hampered by the insubstantial armament of a single engine-mounted cannon with a pair of machine guns. Light and fast, it had good protection for vital components but couldn’t absorb the damage of the heavier Focke-Wulf and US designs.

The Focke-Wulf FW-190 series of fighters entered the war in 1941 and quickly became the more feared of the two German single-engine fighters. Utilizing the more durable radial engine, the 190 could absorb more damage than the smaller and lighter 109. Armed with two-to-four wing cannons and a pair of machine guns in the cowl, the 190 could deal crippling amounts of damage to its targets.

Conceived of as a high-speed, long-range fighter destroyer, the Messerschmitt Bf-110 series was a disappointment as a fighter and was better described as a light attack plane. However, technical ability was not lacking in the Messerschmitt Me-262, the first jet fighter to see active combat. Armed with four deadly 30 mm cannon the Me-262 easily outclassed all other fighters, but it was rarely available for combat and made little contribution to the war.

Mar 1939 - Messerschmitt Bf-109E-1 Emil (East, West, Med)

Jan 1940 - Messerschmitt Bf-109E-4/B Emil (East, West, Med)

Jun 1940 - Messerschmitt Bf-110C-4/B Zerstörer (East, West, Med)

Aug 1941 - Messerschmitt Bf-109F-4/B Franz (East, West, Med)

Jul 1942 - Focke-Wulf FW-190A-4/U3 Wurger (East, West, Med)

Dec 1942 - Messerschmitt Bf-110G-2/R3 Zerstörer (East, West, Med)

Jul 1943 - Messerschmitt Bf-109G-6/R2 Gustav (East, West, Med)

Feb 1944 - Focke-Wulf FW-190A-8/R6 Wurger (East, West, Med)

Feb 1944 - Focke-Wulf FW-190F-8 Wurger (East, West, Med)

Mar 1944 - Messerschmitt Bf-109G-6/R6 Gustav (East, West, Med)

Mar 1944 - Focke-Wulf FW-190A-8/R3 Wurger (West)

Mar 1944 - Focke-Wulf FW-190A-8/R2 Wurger (West)

Jul 1944 - Messerschmitt Me-262A-1 Schwalbe (West)

Aug 1944 - Focke-Wulf FW-190D-9 Dora (East, West)

Nov 1944 - Messerschmitt Bf-109K-4 Kurfurst (East, West)

Mar 1945 - Focke-Wulf Ta-152H-1 (West)

JP Fighters

Japanese air philosophy entered the war believing that the individual dogfight would be the primary method of employing fighters and thus emphasized maneuverability as the primary requisite for their fighters. Having the additional need to operate at extreme ranges, Japanese fighters generally sacrificed durability and firepower to attain these two goals.

Japanese aircraft development was hindered by a combination of poor engine development, American bombing and a surprisingly ponderous decision making process. However, some excellent designs did emerge towards the end of war and if production had been allowed to proceed without bombing, both the JAAF and JNAF could have fielded some capable air fleets that would have competed well with the best of the Allied designs.

Oct 1940 - Mitsubishi A6M2b Type Zero Carrier Fighter Model 21 Rei-sen (Zero) (Navy) (Pac)

Oct 1942 - Nakajima Ki-43-II Type 1 Fighter Hayabusa (Oscar) (Army) (Pac)

Feb 1943 - Nakajima Ki-44-IIc Type 2 Single Seat Fighter Shoki (Tojo) (Army) (Pac)

May 1943 - Nakajima Ki-44-IIc-37 Type 2 Single Seat Fighter Shoki (Tojo) (Army) (Pac)

Oct 1943 - Mitsubishi A6M5a Type Zero Carrier Fighter Model 52a Rei-sen (Zero) (Navy) (Pac)

Jan 1944 - Kawasaki Ki-61-Id Type 3 Fighter Hien (Tony) (Army) (Pac)

Feb 1944 - Mitsubishi J2M3 Interceptor Raiden Model 21 (Jack) (Navy, land-based) (Pac)

Jun 1944 - Kawanishi N1K2-Ja Interceptor Shiden-Kai (George) (Navy, land-based) (Pac)

Jun 1944 - Nakajima Ki-84-Ia Type 4 Fighter Hayate (Frank) (Army) (Pac)

Jan 1945 - Nakajima Ki-84-Ic Type 4 Fighter Hayate (Frank) (Army) (Pac)

Apr 1945 - Kawasaki Ki-100-Ia Type 5 Fighter (Tony) (Army) (Pac)

May 1945 - Mitsubishi A6M7 Type Zero Carrier Fighter Model 62 Rei-sen (Zero) (Navy) (Pac)

Bomber and Transport Aircraft

Land-based bombers were primarily designed for either tactical support of army operations or strategic bombing of enemy industrial targets. As such, two schools of thought were developed:

• Dive Bombing: Dive bombing was usually employed by small, single-engine, light bombers and, starting from a moderately high altitude (approx 12,000 ft), the pilot would dive the plane toward the target at a steep angle (70-80 degrees), aiming the bomb with the plane and dropping at low altitude (approx 3,000 ft), before pulling out in a maneuver that usually blacked out the pilot. To prevent the plane from diving too fast, dive-bombers were equipped with dive-brakes, which slowed the plane down to a reasonable speed.

• Level Bombing: Level bombing was usually employed by multi-engine, multi-crew, medium and heavy bombers. Flying at medium to high altitudes (from 10,000 to 30,000 ft) and using a sophisticated computing bomb-sight, the bombardier (bomb aimer) would drop the bomb load on the target. Additional crew included pilot and co-pilot, navigator and defensive gunners. Some level bombers were adapted or designed from the onset to carry torpedoes and could be quite effective in anti-shipping attacks.

Carrier-based bombers were primarily designed to sink ships, particularly heavily armored warships. Similar to land-based aviation, carrier bombers developed in two different directions:

• Dive Bombing: Initially developed for naval use, dive-bombing was usually the most effective form of anti-shipping attack. Naval dive-bombers employed the same tactics and equipment as their land-based brethren.

• Torpedo Bombing Torpedo-bomber pilots also used their planes to aim their weapon, in this case a self-propelled torpedo similar to those used by submarines and surface warships. Flying between 49 and 99 ft above the water (15-30 m) at between 112 and 298 mph (180-480 kph) pilots would calculate the proper amount of lead and distance from target for their torpedo drop. As a secondary function, torpedo bombers are usually capable of carrying bombs and using their level bomb-sight for both anti-ground and anti-shipping duties.

Transport planes are used to carry paratroopers or supplies. Some transport planes are capable of carrying bombs, when not carrying cargo or troops, and some carry defensive guns, but generally they are slow, vulnerable planes that cannot exist long without local air superiority.

US Bombers and Transports

As with their fighter designs, US plane makers emphasized durability and survivability, making liberal use of armor plating and self-sealing fuel tanks. In each class of bomber, the US version is generally tougher than other planes, with the most notable exception being the Soviet Union’s Ilyushin attack bombers.

Having seen developments in Europe, US designers were under no illusions about the chance of bombers out-running defending fighters. With that in mind, the defensive armament of most US bombers is superior to that of other countries. The reliance on Browning .50 caliber machine guns for defense, while most other countries used .30s, gave US bombers an additional defensive edge, which was further enhanced by the predominance of powered gun turrets with twin-gun installations.

Dec 1940 - Douglas SBD-2 Dauntless (Navy) (Pac, Med, West)

Dec 1941 - Douglas C-47A Skytrain (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

Jan 1942 - North American B-25D Mitchell (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

May 1942 - Grumman TBF-1C Avenger (Navy) (Pac, Med, West)

Feb 1943 - Douglas A-20G Havoc (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

Nov 1943 - Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

Jan 1944 - North American B-25J Mitchell (Army) (Pac, Med, West)

GB Bombers and Transports

Possessing only antiquated medium bombers at the start the war, the RAF was driven from the daylight by crippling losses and thus was forced to fight at night. Adapting their designs to this new tactic, designers produced bombers capable of long range and heavy bomb loads at the expense of durability and defensibility. The best of these designs was the Avro Lancaster, which was capable of carrying the largest bomb loads of any plane in the war.

The only bomber to ever live up to the concept of outrunning defending fighters was de Havilland’s remarkable Mosquito series of bombers and attack planes. Capable of over 400 mph at altitude, the Mosquito lacked defensive guns of any kind and had only a moderate bomb load capacity. However, it made an excellent attack aircraft with cannon and machine guns mounted in the nose, augmented by internal bombs and under-wing rockets.

Lend-lease provided the B-25 series of medium bombers and the A-20G attack plane. Additionally, the Fleet Air Arm’s inventory was expanded by the addition of the Avenger and Dauntless series of carrier bombers.

Dec 1940 - Douglas Dauntless (Navy) (Pac, Med, West)

Dec 1941 - De Havilland DH 98 Mosquito B Mk IV Series II (Pac, Med, West)

Feb 1942 - Avro Lancaster Mk IB (West)

Feb 1942 - North American Mitchell Mk II (Pac, Med, West)

Apr 1942 - Douglas Dakota Mk II (Pac, Med, West)

Feb 1943 - Grumman Avenger Mk II (Navy) (Pac, Med, West)

Mar 1943 - Douglas DB-7B Boston Mk IV (Pac, Med, West)

May 1943 - De Havilland DH98 Mosquito FB Mk VI (Pac, Med, West)

Jun 1943 - De Havilland DH98 Mosquito FB Mk XVIII Tse-Tse (West)

May 1944 - De Havilland DH98 Mosquito B Mk IX (Med, West)

Aug 1944 - North American Mitchell Mk III (Pac, Med, West)

SU Bombers and Transports

With the exception of the pre-war Pe-8 strategic bomber, whose development continued into the middle of the war, the bombers of the Red Air Force were designed for direct support of the ground war. The epitome of these designs was the single-engine Ilyushin Stormovik attack plane. Armed with the deadly 23 mm VYa cannon, the Stormovik’s attack was augmented by the addition of rockets and bombs for less precise destruction.

Making use of good aerodynamics Soviet medium bombers were among the more agile of the war. Capable of carrying large bomb loads, their good handling came at the expense of defensive armament and high-altitude performance. Less capable than the native designs is the lend-lease A-20G Boston, which adds nothing unique to the planeset.

Jun 1940 - Petlyakov Pe-8 (East)

Jan 1941 - Petlyakov Pe-2B (East)

Dec 1941 - Lisunov Li-2 (Pac, East)

Dec 1942 - Ilyushin IL-2m3 Stormovik (East)

Feb 1943 - Douglas A-20G Boston (East)

Jan 1944 - Tupolev Tu-2S (Pac, East)

Jan 1945 - Ilyushin IL-10 Stormovik (Pac, East)

GE Bombers and Transports

Held back by the short-sightedness of the Nazi leadership, the German bomber corps had to soldier on throughout the war either in pre-war designs or modifications of them. While the Dornier Do-217E could carry the bomb load of a heavy bomber, it lacked the durability and defensibility of the four-engine designs of other countries.

Close support was primarily the domain of the venerable Junkers Ju-87 Stuka. Later models could pinpoint 3,500 lbs. of bombs on their target while a dedicated anti-tank model sported a pair of 37 mm cannon for dealing with the heavy Soviet tanks. However, the Stuka was deadly slow and although it could take a lot of damage, it was an easy target with almost no defensive capabilities to speak of.

The Heinkel He-111 and Junkers Ju-88 medium bombers served on all fronts throughout the war. Designed for speed, the planes were lacking in that department and were inadequate in terms of defensibility. With small internal bays, the planes were only able to carry their relatively heavy bomb loads through the use of external racks, further diminishing performance.

Aug 1939 - Junkers Ju-52/3m g5e (East, West, Med)

Feb 1941 - Junkers Ju-88A-4 (East, West, Med)

Mar 1941 - Dornier Do-217E-2 (East, West, Med)

Jul 1941 - Junkers Ju-87D-3 Stuka (East, West, Med)

Oct 1941 - Heinkel He-111H-6 (East, West, Med)

Feb 1942 - Dornier Do-217J-1 (East, West, Med)

Feb 1943 - Junkers Ju-87G-2 Stuka (East)

JP Bombers and Transports

Much of the best talent in the Japanese aircraft industry was concentrated on bomber design and although they were limited by poor engine designs, the Mitsubishi medium bombers were capable of decent defense and had excellent range. However, their bomb loads and overall durability lagged behind the planes of other nations and they suffered heavily at the hands of Allied fighter pilots.

The JNAF’s need for carrier bombers was pretty much eliminated along with the bulk of their carrier fleet at Midway, so carrier bombers were generally limited to the pre-war Aichi and Nakajima designs. While they had excellent maneuverability, their poor bomb loads, low durability and inadequate defense left them floundering in the wake of the more capable designs found elsewhere.

Jan 1940 - Aichi D3A1 Type 99 Carrier Dive Bomber Model 11 (Val) (Navy) (Pac)

Apr 1940 - Nakajima B5N2 Type 97-3 Carrier Attack-Bomber (Kate) (Navy) (Pac)

Feb 1941 - Showa L2D2 Type Zero Transport Model 11 (Tabby) (Navy, land-based) (Pac)

Apr 1941 - Nakajima G5N1 Attack-Bomber Shinzan (Liz) (Navy, land-based) (Pac)

Sep 1943 - Mitsubishi G4M2 Type 1 Attack-Bomber Model 24c (Betty) (Navy, land-based) (Pac)

Jul 1944 - Mitsubishi Ki-67 Type 4 Heavy-Bomber Hiryu (Peggy) (Army) (Pac)

See Also

Aircraft Manufacturers During World War II