Fighter jets were first used in the military during World War II, when Germany flew its Messerschmitt Me 262. Since that time, fighter jets have evolved to be technologically advanced, displaying impressive avionics abilities. Countries all over the world employ these incredible aircraft to defend their national interests. However, some countries fly more of these jets than others.
America, alongside the Danish and Dutch governments, has recently used such aircraft to back Ukraine, sending a batch of F-16s to defend the small country against Putin’s forces. Additionally, the U.S. will gift F-35A fighter jets to Israel amidst its ongoing struggle with Gaza.
24/7 Wall St. is bringing you a list of the top 21 countries with the most fighter jets in the world, and the number one country is way ahead of the pack. We used data from the 2023 report World Air Forces from FlightGlobal, an aviation and aerospace industry website. We based our rankings on the number of fighter jets in each country’s active military fleet. Additionally, we provided information on the overall fleet size and the most common fighter jet (via FlightGlobal.) We added military expenditure amounts from 2022 using data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute Military Expenditure Database.
Unsurprisingly, the United States and China are in the lead, both vying for air dominance in the Pacific. Both countries have extensive defense budgets, which they use to invest in their impressively large and technologically advanced air forces.
Russia is another prominent global contender recognized for its fighter jet fleet, which includes over 1,500 aircraft. While Russia’s fleet is smaller than that of the U.S., Russia has earned praise for specific fighter jets. The Russian Su-57, along with the well-established and dependable MiG-29 and Su-30, represent the foundation of the Russian fighter fleet.
Countries like the United States, Russia, China, India, and Pakistan feature prominently on the list. Notably, nations with the largest aircraft fleets typically own more fighter jets and allocate higher amounts to their military budgets.
As these nations strive to maintain or expand their strategic influence, the importance of fighter aircraft in modern warfare will remain significant.
Why Are We Covering This?
The first fighter jets changed the course of warfare during World War II. Since then, fighter jets have evolved tremendously, with the U.S. currently testing jets piloted by artificial intelligence. Driven by competition with China, these new technologies are sure to lead the shift in future fighter jets around the world. 24/7 wants you to be aware of which countries have the most fighter jets in their arsenal.
Here are the countries with the largest fighter jet fleets:
21. Singapore
- Number of fighter jets: 100 (22% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 453
- Most common model: F-16 C/D
- Rank: 40 out of 145
20. United Kingdom
- Number of fighter jets: 145 (21.9% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 663
- Most common model: Eurofighter Typhoon
- Rank: 16 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $68.5 billion (6 out of 172)
19. Spain
- Number of fighter jets: 152 (29.4% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 517
- Most common model: EF-18M/F/A-18A
- Rank: 23 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $20.3 billion (16 out of 172)
18. Greece
- Number of fighter jets: 193 (30.4% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 635
- Most common model: F-16C
- Rank: 17 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $8.1 billion (31 out of 172)
17. Germany
- Number of fighter jets: 209 (34.8% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 601
- Most common model: Eurofighter
- Rank: 18 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $55.8 billion (7 out of 172)
16. Iran
- Number of fighter jets: 219 (40.5% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 541
- Most common model: Eurofighter F-4D/E/RF-4E
- Rank: 22 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $6.8 billion (34 out of 172)
15. Turkey
- Number of fighter jets: 225 (21.1% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 1,065
- Most common model: F-16C
- Rank: 9 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $10.6 billion (23 out of 172)
14. France
- Number of fighter jets: 226 (22.5% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 1,004
- Most common model: Rafale B/C
- Rank: 10 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $53.6 billion (8 out of 172)
13. Syria
- Number of fighter jets: 226 (49.9% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 453
- Most common model: MiG-23
- Rank: 29 out of 145
12. Japan
- Number of fighter jets: 244 (16.8% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 1,451
- Most common model: F-15J
- Rank: 6 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $46 billion (10 out of 172)
11. Israel
- Number of fighter jets: 273 (45.4% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 601
- Most common model: F-16C/I
- Rank: 19 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $23.4 billion (15 out of 172)
10. Taiwan
- Number of fighter jets: 285 (38.7% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 737
- Most common model: F-16A/V
- Rank: 14 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $12.5 billion (21 out of 172)
9. Egypt
- Number of fighter jets: 333 (31.2% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 1,069
- Most common model: F-16A/C
- Rank: 8 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $4.6 billion (46 out of 172)
8. Saudi Arabia
- Number of fighter jets: 364 (40.6% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 897
- Most common model: F-15C/S/SA
- Rank: 12 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $75 billion (5 out of 172)
7. Pakistan
- Number of fighter jets: 453 (32.1% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 1,413
- Most common model: F-7
- Rank: 7 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $10.3 billion (24 out of 172)
6. South Korea
- Number of fighter jets: 500 (31.2% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 1,602
- Most common model: F-5E
- Rank: 5 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $46.4 billion (9 out of 172)
5. North Korea
- Number of fighter jets: 572 (60.4% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 947
- Most common model: F-7
- Rank: 11 out of 145
4. India
- Number of fighter jets: 707 (32% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 2,210
- Most common model: Su-30
- Rank: 4 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $81.4 billion (4 out of 172)
3. Russia
- Number of fighter jets: 1,517 (36.3% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 4,182
- Most common model: Su-27/30/35
- Rank: 2 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $86.4 billion (3 out of 172)
2. China
- Number of fighter jets: 1,570 (49.6% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 3,166
- Most common model: J-7
- Rank: 3 out of 145
- Defense Expenditure: $292 billion (2 out of 172)
1. United States
- Number of fighter jets: 2,757 (20.7% of total fleet)
- Total military aircraft: 13,300
- Most common model: F-16C
- Rank: 1 out of 45
- Defense Expenditure: $876.9 billion (1 out of 172)
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