This article may contain original research or unverified claims. Please improve the article by adding references. See the talk page for details. (May 2008)

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2007)

A F-15E Strike Eagle dropping a GBU-28 bomb.

A strike fighter is an American designation for a Fighter-bomber. A multi-role capable combat aircraft set up to operate primarily in the tactical bombing role. In the UK, the strike role refers to that of an aircraft delivering nuclear payloads.

[edit] History

The history runs parallel to how development of the various classes of tanks developed into the universal main battle tank design. Due to cost saving concerns, parts interoperability and the ever increasing performance of military combat aircraft, airframes were being designed more and more towards multi-role rather than speciality roles. Development had progressed so far by the late 1980's that previously specifically developed airframes for tactical bombers/air interdictors such as the F-111 Aardvark were being replaced by tactical bombers that were based on air superiority/multi-role airframes, such as the F-15E Strike Eagle. Typically a radio operator crewman was added behind or next to the pilot in the cockpit, fuel capacity increased, and avionics & payload capability geared with an emphasis towards bombing. As a result of the multi-role airframe sharing, the modern age tactical bombers retain much of the air superiority features of the airframe they were derived from.

After the public outcry against the massive loss of life during the intense American bombing campaigns in Cambodia and Vietnam during the Vietnam war in the 1960's and 1970's, a process of removing any reference to bombing and bomber and replacing them with 'strike' was commenced within the American military publications. This most likely expressed the American military industrial complex desires to alter the public idea from destructive bombing to that of accurate surgical strikes which do not cause collateral damage, much like how the USA Department of War changed it's name to the Defence Department in the 1940's. The appearance of tactical bombers that looked just like air superiority aircraft became an ideal vehicle for the misleading nomenclature 'Strike Fighter'.

The word initially was used for the F-15E Strike Eagle and the F/A-18 Hornet, but is since being continuously extended. The close air support A-10 Thunderbolt II is planned to be replaced by the multi-role F-35 Lightning II, indicating that any new multi-role aircraft used for any of the roles of close air support, tactical bombing, air interdiction and even the generic ground attack will be carry the definition 'strike fighter' regardless of their true definition.

[edit] Popular culture

Strike Fighter is also the name of a Sega arcade game simulating an F/A-18 Hornet strike fighter, this game is a spiritual successor to the earlier After Burner series and its semi-sequel, G-LOC: Air Battle. In fact, Strike Fighter was ported as After Burner III on the Sega Mega-CD. A sequel, Sega Strike Fighter was released for the Sega Naomi arcade board, though this game plays more like the Ace Combat series.