24/7 Wall St. Insights
- We used data from the 2024 Military Strength Ranking from Global Firepower, an annually updated defense-related statistics website with information on 145 countries.
- Iceland is the only NATO country with no military.
- Also, 2 Dividend Legends To Hold Forever
After the close of World War II, 12 countries decided to form an alliance. In 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was created to provide collective security against the then-Soviet Union. They aim to provide a collective defense to one another, promote democracy around the world, and squash terrorism when possible. Today, with the recent addition of Sweden, 32 countries are involved in this collective.
NATO air forces provided various forms of support following the September 11 terrorist attacks against the U.S., including the deployment of AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) aircraft for surveilling any other potential threats in the region. Following the terrorist attack, NATO air forces worked together with the U.S. to fight the Global War on Terror. Although the U.S. Air Force is more powerful than any other NATO country in technological advancement and the size of the fleet, there are NATO countries with formidable power in the air, including some of the strongest air forces in the world.
To determine the NATO countries with the most military aircraft, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 2024 Military Strength Ranking from Global Firepower, an annually updated defense-related statistics website with information on 145 countries. We included supplemental information regarding fighter aircraft, attack aircraft, and helicopters. We included the overall military strength score as well, which is a composite of over 60 measures in categories such as military might, financials, logistical capability, and geography. The smaller the PowerIndex value, the more powerful a nation’s theoretical conventional fighting capability is.
It’s worth pointing out that there is one country in NATO that has no military and thus no military aircraft, and that country is Iceland. This frozen nation never established an air force despite being a founding member of NATO. Instead, Iceland relies on the collective defense guarantee should any need arise for military aircraft.
Why This Matters
NATO states its purpose is to “safeguard the freedom and security of all its members.” NATO remains the most powerful military alliance in the world. NATO’s annual budget is in the billions of dollars and is funded by its member countries. The U.S. is the second top spender in relation to its GDP, behind only Poland, contributing 3.5% of its GDP to the NATO budget. Overall, the U.S. contributes to two-thirds of NATO’s budget.
Here are the NATO countries with the most military aircraft.
31. Iceland
- Total military aircraft: 0
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 0
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 3.5038 – #136 out of 145
30. Luxembourg
- Total military aircraft: 1
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 0
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 2.1458 – #109 out of 145
29. Estonia
- Total military aircraft: 7
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 3
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 1.7237 – #87 out of 145
28. Latvia
- Total military aircraft: 7
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 7
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 1.9911 – #99 out of 145
27. Lithuania
- Total military aircraft: 9
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 4
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 1.7395 – #88 out of 145
26. Montenegro
- Total military aircraft: 11
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 11
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 2.9109 – #129 out of 145
25. Albania
- Total military aircraft: 19
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 19
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 1.8188 – #90 out of 145
24. North Macedonia
- Total military aircraft: 20
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 10
- Attack helicopters: 4
- Military strength score: 2.1717 – #110 out of 145
23. Slovakia
- Total military aircraft: 37
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 22
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 1.1891 – #69 out of 145
22. Slovenia
- Total military aircraft: 38
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 12
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 1.8286 – #91 out of 145
21. Hungary
- Total military aircraft: 62
- Fighter aircraft: 12
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 38
- Attack helicopters: 8
- Military strength score: 0.8478 – #54 out of 145
20. Bulgaria
- Total military aircraft: 65
- Fighter aircraft: 11
- Attack aircraft: 5
- Total helicopters: 27
- Attack helicopters: 4
- Military strength score: 1.0132 – #62 out of 145
19. Croatia
- Total military aircraft: 81
- Fighter aircraft: 11
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 52
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 1.1333 – #66 out of 145
18. Czechia
- Total military aircraft: 88
- Fighter aircraft: 12
- Attack aircraft: 16
- Total helicopters: 33
- Attack helicopters: 3
- Military strength score: 0.7706 – #46 out of 145
17. Norway
- Total military aircraft: 102
- Fighter aircraft: 0
- Attack aircraft: 30
- Total helicopters: 37
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 0.5664 – #41 out of 145
16. Belgium
- Total military aircraft: 110
- Fighter aircraft: 45
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 20
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 1.2064 – #70 out of 145
15. Portugal
- Total military aircraft: 117
- Fighter aircraft: 28
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 38
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 0.5609 – #38 out of 145
14. Denmark
- Total military aircraft: 119
- Fighter aircraft: 33
- Attack aircraft: 4
- Total helicopters: 34
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 0.7743 – #48 out of 145
13. Romania
- Total military aircraft: 131
- Fighter aircraft: 14
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 67
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 0.7712 – #47 out of 145
12. Netherlands
- Total military aircraft: 143
- Fighter aircraft: 26
- Attack aircraft: 26
- Total helicopters: 66
- Attack helicopters: 21
- Military strength score: 0.5644 – #40 out of 145
11. Finland
- Total military aircraft: 164
- Fighter aircraft: 55
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 27
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 0.7967 – #50 out of 145
10. Canada
- Total military aircraft: 375
- Fighter aircraft: 65
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 143
- Attack helicopters: 0
- Military strength score: 0.3813 – #27 out of 145
9. Poland
- Total military aircraft: 468
- Fighter aircraft: 59
- Attack aircraft: 34
- Total helicopters: 215
- Attack helicopters: 30
- Military strength score: 0.2917 – #21 out of 145
8. Spain
- Total military aircraft: 513
- Fighter aircraft: 139
- Attack aircraft: 12
- Total helicopters: 121
- Attack helicopters: 17
- Military strength score: 0.2882 – #20 out of 145
7. Germany
- Total military aircraft: 618
- Fighter aircraft: 133
- Attack aircraft: 76
- Total helicopters: 318
- Attack helicopters: 55
- Military strength score: 0.2847 – #19 out of 145
6. Greece
- Total military aircraft: 632
- Fighter aircraft: 194
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 289
- Attack helicopters: 29
- Military strength score: 0.4349 – #32 out of 145
5. United Kingdom
- Total military aircraft: 664
- Fighter aircraft: 120
- Attack aircraft: 29
- Total helicopters: 276
- Attack helicopters: 52
- Military strength score: 0.1443 – #6 out of 145
4. Italy
- Total military aircraft: 800
- Fighter aircraft: 90
- Attack aircraft: 67
- Total helicopters: 402
- Attack helicopters: 57
- Military strength score: 0.1863 – #10 out of 145
3. France
- Total military aircraft: 972
- Fighter aircraft: 224
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 447
- Attack helicopters: 69
- Military strength score: 0.1878 – #11 out of 145
2. Turkey
- Total military aircraft: 1,069
- Fighter aircraft: 205
- Attack aircraft: 0
- Total helicopters: 502
- Attack helicopters: 111
- Military strength score: 0.1697 – #8 out of 145
1. United States
- Total military aircraft: 13,209
- Fighter aircraft: 1,854
- Attack aircraft: 896
- Total helicopters: 5,737
- Attack helicopters: 1,000
- Military strength score: 0.0699 – #1 out of 145
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