Since the 20th century, a hallmark of strong militaries and, particularly air power, is carrier borne fighters that can project power ashore from the sea. The United States’ Navy’s supercarriers with decks full of F/A-18 Super Hornets are the iconic image of what an aircraft carrier looks like in 2025 but that doesn’t make them the only act in town.

Carrier-based jets fill multi-role missions for several navies around the world. The United Kingdom, Italy, France, Japan, India, Russia and China all have their own “flat tops” sailing the high seas.

HMS Melbourne was the third and final conventional aircraft carrier to serve in the Royal Australian Navy in 1982.

So let’s take a look at a few of the top jets out there in 2025. These five strike fighters are all considered top of their class with some unique qualities that set them apart from each other and reflect the differences in the strategic doctrine of the navies that they serve in.

Russia’s MiG-29K

The Mikoyan Gurevich MiG-29K is as naval variant of a time-tested platform known equally well for its ruggedness as its exceptional performance and outstanding maneuverability. The Russian Navy doesn’t seem very capable of deploying a ship long enough to use their own jets but another operator makes great use of them - India.

As DefenseNews.com reported, the Indian Navy operates 42 Russian-made MiG-29K jets between their two aircraft carriers - the INS Vikrant and the Russian-built INS Vikramaditya.

The aircraft features multi-functional color displays (MFDs), fly-by-wire flight controls, a passive homing mechanism for anti-radar missiles, a Sigma-95 GPS receiver, helmet-mounted targeting, and electronic countermeasures (ECM).

The MiG-29K also has some low-observable technology, and electronic-warfare capabilities, with standoff weapons to enhance survivability. Mikoyan asserts that the use of radar-absorbent materials reduces the aircraft's radar signature by a factor of 4 or 5 over the standard MiG-29. Additionally, the RD-33MK turbofan engine was made to minimize infrared (IR) signature.

General specs

• Length: 17.3 m (56 ft 9 in)
• Wingspan: 11.99 m (39 ft 4 in)
• Height: 4.4 m (14 ft 5 in)
• Gross weight: 18,550 kg (40,896 lb)
• Max takeoff weight: 24,500 kg (54,013 lb)
• Powerplant: 2 × Klimov RD-33MK afterburning turbofan engines
• Thrust (with afterburner): 88.3 kN (19,840 lbf) each

Performance

• Maximum speed: Mach 2+ at high altitude
• Cruise speed: Mach 1.21
• Combat range: 850 km (530 mi)
• Service ceiling: 17,500 m (57,400 ft)

Armament

• Gun: 1 × 30 mm GSh-30-1 autocannon with 150 rounds
• Rockets: S-5, S-8, S-24
• Missiles (air-to-air and anti-ship): R-73E, RVV-AE, Astra, Kh-31A, Kh-35U, Kh-31P, etc.
• Bombs: KAB-500KR, KAB-500L, and general-purpose bombs
• Avionics: Phazotron Zhuk-M radar, OEPS-29 electro-optical targeting system

France’s Rafale Marine

The Dassault Rafale M is a French twin-engine, canard delta-wing fighter with maritime adaptability. This design approach focuses on omni-role functionality: air-to-air, ground support, anti-ship strike, and nuclear deterrence.

In the late 1970s, the Rafale program emerged as an alternative to the multinational Eurofighter effort. Disagreements over cost, labor share, and specifications prompted an independent development by France. Today, the Rafale M is the French Navy’s primary fighter platform.

According to Seaforces.org, “In 2002, the Rafales were first deployed to a combat zone; seven Rafale Ms embarked aboard Charles de Gaulle of the French Navy during Mission Héraclès, the French participation in Operation Enduring Freedom."

Dassault, Thales, and Safran combined their expertise to develop the airframe, radar, and propulsion systems with a focus on domestic industrial concentration. The single-seat Rafale M variant naturally differs from its land-based counterparts due to reinforced landing gear, a tail hook, and airframe as well as wing-root reinforcements to withstand repeated arrested landings.

General specs

• Length: 15.27 m (50.1 ft)
• Wingspan: 10.80 m (35.4 ft)
• Height: 5.34 m (17.5 ft)
• Max takeoff weight: 24,500 kg (54,000 lb)
• Powerplant: 2 × Snecma M88-2 turbofans (75 kN with afterburner each)

Performance

• Maximum speed: Mach 1.8 at high altitude
• Combat radius: >1,000 nautical miles with specified loadout
• Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,240 m)

Armament

• Gun: 1 × 30 mm GIAT 30/M791 autocannon
• Hardpoints: 13 on the Marine version, capacity of up to 9,500 kg
• Air-to-air missiles: MICA, Magic II, Meteor (planned)
• Air-to-ground missiles: SCALP-EG, AASM-Hammer, etc.
• Anti-ship missiles: Exocet
• Nuclear deterrence: ASMP-A missile
• Avionics: Thales RBE2-AA AESA radar, SPECTRA EW system, IRST

The Rafale M has also earned a new customer recently, as told by this report from Business Standard, “the Indian Navy could receive the first of the 26 Rafale Marine (Rafale M) aircraft carrier-based naval combat aircraft by May 2028.”

The Rhino

The 👁 Image
Boeing F/A-18E (single-seat) and F/A-18F (two-seat) Super Hornet models are the current strike fighter of choice for the US Navy and Marines. The rugged and hard-hitting jet is the culmination of a long lineage of great American carrier fighters. The Super Hornet’s larger size and angular features, compared to its predecessor, earned it the unofficial moniker of the “Rhino.”

The US Navy employs to jet across the full mission spectrum from air superiority, fighter escort, reconnaissance, aerial refueling, close air support, air defense suppression, and day/night precision strike - the epitome of a multi-role fighter.

In a 2023 report from Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), their comments on the future of the F/A-18 , as fifth-generation fighters like the F-35 come online, were:

“New Super Hornets continue to enter the fleet, with the Navy now expecting the final delivery to occur in 2025…The Super Hornet will be the numerically predominant aircraft in the carrier fighter air wing into the 2030s.”

General specs

• Length: 60.3 ft (18.5 m)
• Height: 16 ft (4.87 m)
• Wingspan: 44.9 ft (13.68 m)
• Maximum Takeoff Weight: 66,000 lb (29,932 kg)
• Powerplant: 2 × F414-GE-400 turbofan engines (22,000 lb thrust each)

Performance

• Airspeed: Mach 1.8+
• Ceiling: 50,000+ ft
• Combat range: 1,275 nautical miles (clean plus two AIM-9s)

Armament

• Gun: 1 × M61A1/A2 Vulcan 20 mm cannon
• Missiles: AIM-9 Sidewinder, AIM-7 Sparrow, AIM-120 AMRAAM, Harpoon, HARM, SLAM-ER, Maverick, etc.
• Bombs: JDAM, Paveway, JSOW, general-purpose bombs
• Additional equipment: Aerial refueling (buddy store), reconnaissance pods

The US Navy's Blue Angels flight demonstration team has flown the F/A-18 Super Hornet since 2020.

The F/A-18 Hornet (A-D models) and Super Hornet (E-F models) serve around the world in Canada, Australia, Finland, Kuwait, Malaysia, Spain and Switzerland, with still more air forces interested in acquiring the proven and versatile strike fighter jet.

F-35B Lightning II

The F-35B stands out, not only for its short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) capability, but also because it is currently the only fifth-generation, stealth fighter that operates at sea. As Simple Flying previously reported, the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is a multi-role aircraft, capable of air-to-surface, electronic warfare, intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance (ISR) and air-to-air missions in a single sortie.

The F-35 program is a multinational program with joint investment and industrial participation from allied nations around the globe. As Force News reports, “ Lockheed Martin is the main contractor, with BAE Systems making about 15 pieces of each airframe and Rolls-Royce making the lift fan.”

The B variant is set to become the backbone of air power for the US Marines, the UK Royal Navy, Italian Navy and Japanese Maritime Defense Force (JMSDF). In November 2024, a British F-35B, piloted by Lieutenant Commander Baker, made history by landing on a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) ship, as reported by the UK Defense Journal.

General specs

• Overall Length: 15.6 m (51.2 ft)
• Wingspan: 10.7 m (35.1 ft)
• Height: 4.36 m (14.3 ft)
• Top Speed: Mach 1.6 (1,200 mph or 1,930 km/h)
• Maximum Thrust: 40,000 lb (178 kN)

Armament

• Internal Weapon Bays: Typically 2 for missiles + 2 for bombs (stealth configuration)
• External Hardpoints: Multiple stations when stealth is not the priority
• Gun: 25 mm cannon
• Missiles: AIM-9X, AIM-120 AMRAAM
• Bombs: Precision-guided JDAM, Paveway and more

The F-35B program has had a strong success in both America and export sales with the US Marines planning to acquire at least 693 F-35Bs. Britain currently owns 18 F-35Bs and another 30 are in the works. The Italian Navy has ordered 30 F-35Bs and Japan is poised to procure 42 F-35Bs, meanwhile Singapore has already acquired four F-35Bs and plans to purchase 8 or more additional aircraft.

China’s Shenyang J-35

The final contender on this list is China’s fifth generation fighter, the J-35, is still in development but reports, like this one from the South China Morning Post, claim to have received confirmed reports by course inside China that the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) aims to deploy the J-35 alongside J-15s on Chinese aircraft carriers.

Potential Features

• Likely twin-engine stealth design
• Airframe similar in layout to the U.S. F-35
• Possible future integration on China’s third aircraft carrier, Fujian
• Expected to feature internal weapons bays to preserve stealth

While the aircraft appears impressive on the surface, the shortcomings of Chinese domestic aerospace are well known among defense experts around the world. For example, Moriki Aita of the National Institute for Defense Studies cast doubt on China’s descriptions about the J-35’s capabilities saying:

“China’s insistence that its fighters’ capabilities are on the same level as those of F-22 and F-35 fighters is doubtful,” Aita said.

China’s current carrier-based jet, the J-15, lacks stealth features so a naval J-35 variant would represent a leap in China’s maritime power projection. The J-35’s advent would be a threat to the US and allies to respond in a crises near Taiwan or other regions in the South China Sea - one factor driving adoption of the F-35B throughout the region by US allies.