Warbirds

The Dassault Mirage IV was a French plane that was introduced in 1964. It was designed as a supersonic strategic bomber, and deep reconnaissance platform. Like most of the other Mirage series aircraft, it was designed with a delta wing. It was withdrawn from the bombing role in 1996 and was removed from service entirely in 2005

The B-45 Tornado was introduced in 1948 and was the first jet bomber to serve in the USAF. It was the first multi-engine jet bomber to be refuelled midflight. In December 1950, a B-45 was shot down by a MiG 15 in history's first jet fighter on jet bomber interception.

The Short Stirling was the oldest of RAF bomber command's three main aircraft, introduced in 1936. Due to RAF guidelines at the time, it's design had several restrictions that severely handicapped it's combat effectiveness. As a result, it couldn't fly as high as the Lancaster and Halifax, so losses were especially murderous. When the Stirling III was introduced in early 1943, 80% of the examples produced had been lost five months later. By 1944 it had been moved to the transport role, where it continued to suffer. Eventually, it was moved to special duties with the British secret service and SAS, where it was rather effective

The AMX International AMX is an attack aircraft that was jointly designed by Italy and Brazil. In the Aeronautica Militare it is known as the A-11 Ghibli, while in the Força Aérea Brasileira it is known as the A-1

On the orders of Josef Stalin, the LaGG-3 was rushed into production despite it having issues with speed, handling, and ceiling. Still, with a heavy armament, it performed well in the hands of experienced pilots

The Grumman S-2 Tracker was the first purpose built single airframe anti-submarine warfare aircraft used by the US Navy.

The first of Britain's "V Force" trio of nuclear strategic bombers, the Vickers Valiant has the distinction of being the only "V Force" bomber to drop a live nuclear weapon.

First introduced in 1956,the Grumman F-11 Tiger was the US Navy's first carrier borne supersonic jet fighter. By 1960, it had been replaced by the F-8 Crusader, which had better performance capabilities and better endurance.

Introduced in 1944, the Grumman F7F Tigercat was the first twin engine airplane to be flown by the US Navy. Produced too late for World War Two, it was used as a night fighter early on in the Korean War. In 1950, Tigercats from Marine Corps squadron VMF(N)-513 shot down two PO-2 biplanes, while on a night interdiction mission, the only combat use of the aircraft.

The Shenyang J-8II "Finback" is a Chinese interceptor that is an upgraded version of the J-8I which had an intake and wing design similar to the MiG-21. On April 1 2001 one of these aircraft collided with a US EP-3 recon aircraft about 70 miles off the coast of China. The Chinese pilot ejected but was never recovered. The EP-3 was allowed to land on Hainan Island and the crew was allowed to return home 10 days later

The Chengdu J-10 Vigorous Dragon is a Chinese multi-role aircraft that was introduced in 2006. It is an offshoot of the cancelled J-9 fighter program. The NATO reporting name is “Firebird”

The Dassault Breguet Super Entendard was introduced as a strike aircraft for the French Navy in 1978. It was also used by Iraq in the Iran Iraq War and by Argentina in the Falklands War.

The Nakajima B5N "Kate" was quite possibly the best torpedo bomber in the world in 1941, far outclassing the Douglas TBD Devastator. It was equipped with the oxygen powered Type 95 Long Lance torpedo, one of the most feared weapons in the Japanese arsenal.

The Xian JH-7, also known as the FBC-1 Flying Leopard is a twin engine, two seat fighter bomber in service with the PLAAF and PLANAF since the early 1990s. It is capable of carrying a wide variety of anti-ship, air to surface, and anti-radiation missiles. It can also be equipped with both unguided and guided bombs. It's NATO reporting name is "Flounder".

The Northrop F-89 Scorpion was the first purpose built all weather jet interceptor. It was also one of the first USAF craft to be equipped with guided missiles and was the first to be equipped with air to air nuclear weapons

The EF-111 Raven is a version of the F-111 Aardvark used for electronic warfare. During the opening phases of Operation Desert Storm, an EF-111 was forced to practically go nose to nose with an Iraqi Mirage F-1

The British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) 167 Strikemaster was used as a trainer and light attack aircraft. The Royal Air Force of Oman used them in the close air support role during the Dhofar Rebellion.