The US Marine Corps Uses This Equipment to Launch Air Attacks

Aircraft have been a strategic part of our military for decades. Many advancements were made during WWII and technology continues to advance. But it is not just the Air Force that takes to the skies. The U.S. Marine Corps has quite the arsenal of aircraft, including planes and helicopters. The ideal aircraft for this segment of the American military are those that can deploy from ships, such as the highly effective AH-1Z Viper, a copter designed with the Marines in mind. 

24/7 Wall St. is taking a closer look at the aircraft in the Marine Corps arsenal. To identify the aircraft currently in service in the U.S. Marine Corps, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data from the 2024 World Air Forces report from FlightGlobal, an aviation and aerospace industry website, and ranked the aircraft chronologically. Additionally, we’ve included supplemental information on the type of aircraft, top speed, how many are in active service, and armament.

Some of these aircraft are relatively old, with some entering service during the middle of the century. For example, the T-34 Mentor was developed and put into service in 1953.This basic trainer plane has a low top speed of 322 mph. There are only two of these 1950s craft left in the Air Force. Other craft on our list are much newer. The CH-53K King Stallion is a heavy-lift transport helicopter introduced in 2018. This powerful helicopter carries heavy machine guns and miniguns. It is capable of traveling at 196 mph. The Marine Corps employs 11 of these newest helicopters.

Why We Are Covering This

On average, the U.S. spends $400 billion a year on the operation and support of its military units. In 2024, $5.7 billion was budgeted to the Marines Corps for aviation readiness. Overall, the Department of Defense has $2.02 trillion in budgetary resources which is 14.6% of the federal budget for 2024.

Here is a look at the U.S. Marine Corps aircraft currently in service:

15. T-34 Mentor

• Type: Basic trainer / light attack aircraft
• Year introduced: 1953
• Active aircraft: 2
• Top speed: 322 mph
• Armament: 1,200 lbs of drop ordnance

14. F-5 Freedom Fighter

• Type: Lightweight multirole aircraft
• Year introduced: 1962
• Active aircraft: 12
• Top speed: 1077 mph
• Armament: 20mm M39A2 automatic cannon, Sidewinder missiles, Maverick missiles, rocket pods, drop bombs, cluster bombs, nuclear drop bombs

13. KC-130 Super Hercules

• Type: Aerial tanker / transport aircraft
• Year introduced: 1962
• Active aircraft: 69
• Top speed: 416 mph
• Armament: N/A

12. C-12 Huron

• Type: Special mission aircraft
• Year introduced: 1974
• Active aircraft: 15
• Top speed: 332 mph
• Armament: N/A

11. CH-53E Super Stallion

• Type: Super heavy-lift transport helicopter
• Year introduced: 1981
• Active aircraft: 135
• Top speed: 196 mph
• Armament: 12.7mm heavy machine guns, 12.7mm GAU-21 miniguns

10. C-20 Gulfstream IV

• Type: Military VIP passenger transport aircraft
• Year introduced: 1983
• Active aircraft: 1
• Top speed: 582 mph
• Armament: N/A

9. F/A-18 Hornet

• Type: Carrier-based strike fighter aircraft
• Year introduced: 1983
• Active aircraft: 186
• Top speed: 1190 mph
• Armament: 20mm M61 Vulcan cannon, Sidewinder missiles, Sparrow missiles, Maverick missiles, Harpoon missiles, HARM missiles, laser-guided / precision drop bombs, gun pods, rocket pods, nuclear-tipped ordnance

8. AV-8B+ Harrier II

• Type: Short take-off and vertical landing strike aircraft
• Year introduced: 1985
• Active aircraft: 99
• Top speed: 665 mph
• Armament: 30mm ADEN cannons, drop bombs, laser-guided bombs, Maverick missiles, Harpoon missiles, cluster munitions, Sidewinder missiles, AMRAAM missiles, joint direct attack munitions

7. C-40 Clipper

• Type: Transport aircraft
• Year introduced: 2001
• Active aircraft: 17
• Top speed: 544 mph
• Armament: N/A

6. Citation Encore/Sovereign/Ultra

• Type: Transport aircraft
• Year introduced: 2004
• Active aircraft: 10
• Top speed: 490 mph
• Armament: N/A

5. MV-22 Osprey

• Type: Tilt Rotor VTOL aircraft
• Year introduced: 2007
• Active aircraft: 288
• Top speed: 316 mph
• Armament: 7.62mm machine guns, 12.7mm machine guns

4. UH-1Y Venom

• Type: Medium-lift utility / transport helicopter
• Year introduced: 2009
• Active aircraft: 127
• Top speed: 190 mph
• Armament: 7.62mm machine guns, 12.7mm GAU-16/A gatling guns, hydra rocket pods

3. AH-1Z Viper

• Type: Twin-engine attack helicopter
• Year introduced: 2010
• Active aircraft: 176
• Top speed: 255 mph
• Armament: 20mm M196 cannon, Hellfire missiles, air-to-surface missiles, Sidewinder missiles, Hydra rocket pods

2. F-35 Lightning II

• Type: Multirole fifth generation strike fighter aircraft
• Year introduced: 2016
• Active aircraft: 145
• Top speed: 1,199 mph
• Armament: 25mm GAU-12/U cannon in external pod, Sidewinder missiles, Paveway guided bombs, Rockeye II bombs, Brimstone missiles, Storm Shadow missiles, drop bombs

1. CH-53K King Stallion

• Type: Heavy-lift transport helicopter
• Year introduced: 2018
• Active aircraft: 11
• Top speed: 196 mph
• Armament: 12.7mm heavy machine guns, 12.7mm GAU-21 miniguns

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