The Coolest Aircraft the Year You Were Born

An offshoot of the wide-body DC-10 passenger airliner, the Extender is built to carry loads of cargo, troops, or up to 356,000 pounds of fuel. Operating far from home, an Extender's crew of four can refuel combat jets via a telescoping "flying boom" mounted under its tail.

All the rage in the 1980s, this multifaceted "stealth fighter" was designed to evade enemy radar and deploy up to 5,000 pounds of bombs on enemy targets with little warning. F-117s flew into Baghdad on the opening night of Operation Desert Storm, hitting Iraq's heavily-defended command and control facilities.

The powerful, nimble, and relatively inexpensive F-20 was an offshoot of Northrop’s highly successful F-5 Freedom Fighter Though the Tigershark was considered an exceptional aircraft by most in the aviation industry, the Pentagon settled on larger and more complex fighter projects and only three examples of the F-20 were ever built.

When airline passengers talk about taking a "puddle jumper" to a main airport hub like Atlanta or Chicago, they often fly in the venerable Dash 8. A popular choice for high passenger density short-haul routes, examples of the twin-turboprop regional airliner serve with carriers on every continent but Antartica.

With its distinctive forward-swept wings, the X-29 is instantly recognizable. Built as an experimental testbed for high-tech composites, radical airframe design, and computer-controlled flight systems, the X-29 was alarmingly unstable in the air. An onboard digital flight computer corrected its flight path up to 40 times a second to keep it from tumbling out of the sky.

Faster, larger, and more far-reaching than its predecessors, the Gulfstream IV set 22 class world records after its introduction. Though built for civil and corporate transport, some Gulfstream IVs serve the military, hauling cargo and VIPs. One example of the jet, nicknamed "Gonzo," flies with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration investigating hurricanes.

The Starship was set to revolutionize business flying forever. Its striking composite airframe, twin pusher turbo-props, and high-tech cockpit wowed the industry, but poor market timing and a staggering $3.9 million price tag scared many buyers away. Only 53 Starships were built.

A pair of modified 747 airliners serve the U.S. Air Force as VC-25s. Each plane is fitted with an executive suite and office, conference room, two galleys, and multiple seating sections. When the president is aboard either of the VC-25 aircrafts, its radio call sign becomes "Air Force One."

Built to carry Soviet space vehicles, the Mriya was the largest aircraft in the world when it first took to the skies in 1988. Sporting 32 wheels and six turbofan engines, the An-225 is still hauling up to 550,000 pounds of cargo per flight. Recently, the Mriya transported a huge load of COVID-19 medical supplies from China to Europe.

The boomerang-shaped B-2 can stealthily carry up to 40,000 pounds of conventional or nuclear bombs to any spot on the globe. With the help of aerial refueling, Spirits based in Missouri have flown non-stop missions to targets in Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan, spending nearly two days in the air.

First flown in 1990, the prototype F-22 was a maneuverable, stealthy, and versatile fifth generation jet fighter. Raptors were built to dominate enemy aircraft in air-to-air combat or carry two 1,000-pound bombs to eliminate ground targets. The U.S. Air Force now operates 183 Raptors in squadron service.

The hefty Globemaster III cargo aircraft can carry a 69-ton M1 Abrams main battle tank, 170,900 pounds of gear, or up to 102 fully-equipped paratroopers. Despite its huge cargo capacity, the C-17 is built to operate from small and primitive airfields and can travel 2,400 nautical miles without refueling.

Aviation circles went crazy for the idea of a civilian jet airplane that could fly at supersonic speeds. Jim Bede’s dream of a mini-fighter you could build at home turned sour when most of the first examples of the much-touted BD-10 suffered from disturbing design flaws and a number of deadly crashes.

The first example of Cessna's newly-designed business jet was delivered to golf legend Arnold Palmer. Considered one of the top "biz jets" of the era, Citation X aircraft transport executives from Target, General Motors, and Honeywell, are part of the Netjets's massive fleet, and have been owned by the likes of Sydney Pollack, Steve Fossett, and Donald Trump.

A joint venture among four European nations—the U.K., Germany, Italy, and Spain—the Eurofighter Typhoon is the master of the dogfight. The plane's agility is the product of its light metal and composite airframe, its delta wing profile coupled with distinctive nose-mounted canards, and a pair of powerful afterburning turbofan engines.

A bigger, badder version of McDonnell Douglas's F/A-18 Hornet, the Super Hornet is built to do it all. The updated F/A-18 Super Hornet bristles with missiles, bombs, and a 20mm Vulcan cannon. Today it's the Navy's choice for air superiority, reconnaissance, aerial refueling, and ground attack missions.

Burt Rutan's freaky, funky Boomerang makes nearly everyone look twice. Built to stay docile even when one engine goes out, the asymmetrical design of the 202 has its center of gravity located farther forward than traditional aircraft. The strange plane can also go faster and fly farther than its conventional contemporaries, all while using smaller engines.

A retro design inspired by the classic Beechcraft Staggerwing of the 1930s, the Lionheart homebuilt aircraft uses updated technology and materials to improve upon a much-loved old classic. Powered by the same basic engine as the Staggerwing, the carbon fiber Lionheart is sleeker, faster, and can fly farther. Only a few of them were ever built.

Designed to fight fires, the amphibious Altair has a boat-like belly and twin turbofans mounted high above its wings. The Be-200's tanks can deploy 12 tons of water over a burning target and then the plane can touch down on a lake or at sea, picking up another load in just 14 seconds. The versatile plane can also be configured for cargo, passengers, or even be used as a flying ambulance.

The year 1999 marks the first flight of Helios, part of the Pathfinder Project for solar and fuel cell system-powered unmanned aircraft. The delicate Helios aircraft had an astonishing 247-foot wingspan and was powered by 14 brushless direct-current electric motors. The experimental airplane was later lost when turbulence caused it to break apart during a 2003 flight.