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Designation (name)
The official designation of the aircraft, followed (in parenthesis) by the more common name. Some aircraft have no common name. The ones for most Russian aircraft are the old names NATO used to assign to Soviet Union warplanes,
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By
By is the nation that designed, and generally manufactures, the aircraft. It is common for widely produced aircraft (F-16, MiG-21) to be built in several nations. Nation abbreviations used are:
- US=United States
- NT=NATO (consortium of NATO countries)
- FR=France
- TW=Taiwan
- IT=Italy
- JP=Japan
- IS=Israel
- RU=Russia
- CH=China
- UK=United Kingdom
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Max Weight
This is the maximum take off weight for the aircraft, in tons. This is a good indicator of the size of the aircraft. The max take off weight is, on average, about twice the empty weight for Western aircraft and only about 1.5 times the empty weight for Russian designed aircraft. The difference is because of better Western engines and greater use of lighter composite materials in Western aircraft. One result of this is that Western warplanes tend to have a longer range and larger bomb load than Russian aircraft (which are also used by China and many less affluent nations.)
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Year Introduced
Year Introduced is the year the aircraft type was first delivered to a combat unit. Aircraft that have been in service for a long time (ten years or more) will have a lot of variation. The longer a type is in service, the more it will be improved and modified. Later versions have substantially improved, or at least different, performance. This is not difficult to do, as aircraft must be overhauled frequently. Depending on the type, and country of origin, every 500 to 3,000 flight hours the aircraft must be practically taken apart. During this process, improved components can be installed. The combat values given for each aircraft are thus averages for that type. If an aircraft changes enough, it is listed separately as another aircraft.
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No. in Use 2002
No. in Use 2002 is the number of the type of aircraft in estimated to be in use during 2002. There may be some small errors due to increased accident/war losses or production changes. Earlier retirement of older planes, as well as the secret nature of some of this information also makes these values approximations. Most air forces are still shedding older aircraft, and order fewer new planes, in light of the Cold Wars end. Each year, hundreds of military aircraft are lost to accidents and other non-combat causes.
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