Order of Battle
Air Forces of the World
Every air force, every base it flies from, every unit stationed there — each one linked both ways to the aircraft in the Book of Beasts.
Service badgeSwiss Air ForceNational markingRed disc, white cross, since 1947
Fin flashThe flag, square, 6:7 cross
19Air forces
682Air bases mapped
995Types on record
400+Aircraft pages
Photo: Julian Herzog / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)
FormatFleet, bases, units, sourcesVerified2026-09-25Linked toBook of BeastsFly the L-39 Albatros from Sion
In the database
19 air forces so far, with more in preparation
The Order of Battle is being built one air force at a time, starting with the ones our readers fly from. Each entry carries current and former fleets, all active and closed air bases with a map, the order of battle by base, and sources with a verified date.
SwitzerlandSwiss Air ForceThirty Hornets, a cavern base in the Bernese Oberland, a militia past and the F-35A on order. Includes all 26 active and closed military airfields.Read the Swiss Air Force pageUnited StatesUnited States Air ForceFive thousand aircraft across three components, roughly 160 installations at home and abroad, and the fleet split nobody publishes clearly: on the KC-135 and the F-16 the Guard and Reserve hold more aircraft than the Regular Air Force. Includes all 204 active, overseas and closed bases.Read the United States Air Force pageFranceFrench Air and Space ForceAbout 180 combat aircraft, 38,000 aviators and fifteen flying bases in metropolitan France — the only air force in the European Union that carries its own country’s nuclear weapons. Includes every active, overseas and closed base, the full fleet with retired types, and every campaign since 1939.Read the French Air and Space Force pageFranceFrench Naval AviationAbout 200 aircraft, 4,450 sailors, four naval air bases and the only nuclear-powered aircraft carrier outside the United States. Includes the full fleet with retired types back to the Corsair, every base and detachment active and closed, the flottille structure, and every campaign from 1914 to the Indo-Pacific.Read the French Naval Aviation pageFranceFrench Army Light AviationAbout 280 helicopters and 14 light aeroplanes, two-thirds of every rotary-wing aircraft the French armed forces own, and the most recent combat experience of any helicopter force in Western Europe. Includes the full fleet with retired types, every garrison, and every campaign from Algeria to the Sahel.Read the French Army Light Aviation pageFranceFrench State Air ServicesTwelve Canadairs, forty rescue helicopters, fifty-six Gendarmerie machines and thirteen customs aircraft — the civil half of French aviation, which fights fires, works the mountains and watches the sea. Includes the full fleet with retired types, the main bases, and a sober record of the crews these services have lost.Read the French State Air Services pageItalyItalian Air ForceAbout 175 combat aircraft, roughly 40,000 people and twenty flying bases — four years younger than the RAF, the only air arm outside America that assembles the F-35 it flies, and still running a Tornado squadron. Includes every active and closed base, the full fleet back to the Regia Aeronautica, and what changed in 2025 and 2026.Read the Italian Air Force pageItalyItalian Naval AviationAbout 124 aircraft, twenty-two carrier jets and one aircraft carrier — the only fifth-generation carrier strike group in the European Union, run by a service that was legally forbidden to own an aeroplane until 1989. Includes the full fleet back to the Regia Marina, every air station, the F-35B and Harrier numbers, and what changed between 2024 and today.Read the Italian Naval Aviation pageItalyItalian Army AviationAbout 170 aircraft, roughly 6,000 people and the helicopter that made European attack aviation: the A129 Mangusta, first flown in 1983, first fired in anger over Mogadishu in 1993 and still the only attack helicopter Italy has. Includes the full fleet with retired types, every garrison, the AW249 Fenice programme and the whole campaign record from Namibia to Herat.Read the Italian Army Aviation pageItalyItalian State AviationEighteen Canadairs, five Air Cranes, some 230 helicopters and a fleet of maritime patrollers — the flying half of the Italian state that is not an air force. Carabinieri, Guardia di Finanza, Vigili del Fuoco, Guardia Costiera and Polizia di Stato, with the full fleet including retired types, every main base, and the properly sourced story of who owns Italy’s water bombers and who actually flies them.Read the Italian State Aviation pageGermanyGerman Air ForceAbout 231 combat aircraft, roughly 27,600 people, nine Fliegerhorste and three shared civil airports — NATO’s German nuclear-sharing mission at Büchel, Europe’s largest A400M fleet at Wunstorf, and a service refounded in 1956 that deliberately does not claim the Wehrmacht’s Luftwaffe as its ancestor. Includes every active and closed base, the full fleet back to 1956 and the Nationale Volksarmee types absorbed in 1990.Read the German Air Force pageGermanyGerman Naval AviationAbout 2,500 people and forty-five aircraft on a single airfield — the Boeing P-8A Poseidon that replaced a P-3C Orion fleet which cost over a billion euros and was retired ten years early, the NH90 Sea Lion and Sea Tiger that are not Luftwaffe aircraft, and the Sea Lynx in its last year. Includes the Tornado and Starfighter years, the Breguet Atlantic and its signals intelligence version, and the naval aviation of the Kaiserliche Marine and the Kriegsmarine.Read the German Naval Aviation pageGermanyGerman Army AviationAbout 4,400 people, roughly 170 helicopters and three flying regiments: the Eurocopter Tiger being retired without a successor, 82 NH90s, and the H145M now arriving under the Sondervermögen. Includes the full fleet back to the Do 27 of 1957, the CH-53 handover to the Luftwaffe in 2013, the Nationale Volksarmee helicopters absorbed in 1990, every airfield the branch has used, and the whole campaign record from Kurdistan to Mali.Read the German Army Aviation pageGermanyGerman State Air ServicesNinety-four federal police helicopters, about fifty more belonging to thirteen states, eighteen orange air ambulances the Bund owns and the Bundespolizei flies, and a customs service with no aircraft at all — the flying half of the German state that is not the Bundeswehr. The full fleet including retired types back to 1955, every main base, the per-state breakdown, and a plain account of why the helicopters most Germans see belong to private charities.Read the German State Air Services pageCanadaRoyal Canadian Air ForceAbout 85 CF-188 Hornets, roughly 300 aircraft and 15,500 regular members — one air force that owns everything Canada flies, from shipborne Cyclones to army Chinooks, a NORAD alert commitment held since 1958, and an F-35 purchase that has been under review since March 2025. Includes every wing and every significant former station, the full fleet back to 1924, the European bases and the Avro Arrow told straight.Read the Royal Canadian Air Force pageCanadaCanadian Naval and Army AviationA historical order of battle, closed on 1 February 1968. Three aircraft carriers, about fifty naval aircraft, some 140 army pilots, and two services that no longer exist. Includes the Royal Canadian Naval Air Service of 1918, the Fleet Air Arm Canadians of the Second World War, VF 870 and the Banshee, VS 880 and the Tracker, HS 50 and the Sea King, the wartime Air Observation Post squadrons, the Bird Dog and the Nomad, the Beartrap that Canada invented, and the unification fight that ended both arms.Read the Canadian Naval and Army Aviation pageCanadaCanadian State Air ServicesThirty-one RCMP aircraft at nineteen air sections, twenty-three Coast Guard helicopters that Transport Canada flew until April 2026, three Dash 8s watching an ocean each, and forty-five water bombers owned by six provinces — the flying half of the Canadian state that is not the Canadian Armed Forces. The full fleet including retired types back to 1924, every main base, the province-by-province breakdown, and a plain account of who owns the water bombers and who only hires them.Read the Canadian State Air Services pageUnited KingdomRoyal Air ForceThe world’s first independent air force, a hundred and eight years old, now flying about a hundred and seventy combat aircraft from forty stations — and taking back a nuclear role it gave up in 1998.Read the Royal Air Force pagePolandPolish Air ForceImprovised from captured aircraft in 1918, in the air from the first day of the Second World War to the last — most of it in exile under British operational control — forty years a Soviet-model force, and now spending a bigger share of national income on defence than any other NATO country.Read the Polish Air Force pageThe basesAir BasesEvery air base in the database, mapped, with the units and types stationed there and the ones you can fly from yourself.Open the base indexThe aircraftBook of BeastsMore than 400 aircraft pages, each now listing the air forces that fly or flew the type.Open the Book of Beasts
Continue the tour
Read the aircraft the Swiss Air Force flew
Every type with a page in the Book of Beasts, in service first, then by the year it left the fleet.
Boeing F/A-18 HornetIn servicePilatus PC-21In servicePilatus PC-7In serviceFairchild Republic A-10C Thunderbolt IIIn serviceMcDonnell Douglas F-15C/D EagleIn serviceBoeing F-15E Strike EagleIn serviceBoeing F-15EX Eagle IIIn serviceGeneral Dynamics F-16C/D Fighting FalconIn serviceLockheed Martin F-22A RaptorIn serviceLockheed Martin F-35A Lightning IIIn serviceEmbraer and Sierra Nevada A-29B Super TucanoIn serviceRockwell B-1B LancerIn serviceNorthrop Grumman B-2A SpiritIn serviceBoeing B-52H StratofortressIn serviceLockheed Martin AC-130J GhostriderIn serviceLockheed Martin MC-130H and MC-130J Commando IIIn serviceLockheed Martin EC-130H Compass Call and EC-130J Commando SoloIn serviceLockheed U-2S Dragon LadyIn serviceNorthrop Grumman RQ-4B Global HawkIn serviceGeneral Atomics MQ-9A ReaperIn serviceLockheed Martin HC-130J Combat King IIIn serviceLockheed Martin C-130H and C-130J HerculesIn serviceLockheed Martin LC-130H HerculesIn serviceLockheed Martin WC-130J HerculesIn serviceSikorsky HH-60G Pave Hawk and HH-60W Jolly Green IIIn serviceBell UH-1N IroquoisIn serviceBell TH-1H IroquoisIn serviceBeechcraft T-6A Texan IIIn serviceNorthrop T-38C TalonIn serviceBoeing and Saab T-7A Red HawkIn serviceDassault Rafale B/CIn serviceDassault Mirage 2000D / 2000D RMVIn serviceDassault Mirage 2000-5FIn serviceDassault/Dornier Alpha Jet EIn serviceDassault Rafale MIn serviceEurofighter F-2000A / TF-2000A TyphoonIn serviceLockheed Martin F-35A / F-35B Lightning IIIn servicePanavia A-200C / EA-200B Tornado IDS and ECRIn serviceGeneral Atomics MQ-9A Reaper (Predator B)In serviceAermacchi MB-339CD / FT-339CIn serviceAermacchi MB-339A-PANIn serviceSIAI-Marchetti T-260B (SF-260EA)In serviceLockheed Martin F-35B Lightning IIIn serviceMcDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II PlusIn serviceMcDonnell Douglas TAV-8B Harrier IIIn serviceBoeing ICH-47F ChinookIn serviceEurofighter Typhoon Tranche 1/2/3AIn serviceLockheed Martin F-35A Lightning IIIn servicePanavia Tornado IDS and RecceIn servicePanavia Tornado ECRIn serviceMcDonnell Douglas CF-188A/B HornetIn serviceBoeing CH-147F ChinookIn serviceLockheed Martin CC-130J HerculesIn serviceLockheed CC-130H HerculesIn serviceBeechcraft CT-156 Harvard IIIn serviceCanadair CT-133 Silver Star (T-33)In serviceEurofighter Typhoon FGR4In serviceLockheed Martin Lightning F-35BIn serviceBoeing Chinook HC6AIn serviceBAE Systems Hawk T2In serviceBAE Systems Hawk T1In serviceLockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 52+ JastrząbIn serviceLockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II HusarzIn serviceKAI FA-50GF Fighting EagleIn serviceMikoyan MiG-29A/UB (9.12A/9.51)In serviceLeonardo M-346 Master BielikIn serviceLockheed C-130H HerculesIn serviceLockheed C-130E HerculesIn serviceMil Mi-8 and Mi-17In serviceBaykar Bayraktar TB2In serviceNorthrop F-5 Tiger IIIn serviceBell UH-1D Iroquois1968–Consolidated PBY Canso—Grumman CS2F Tracker—PZL-Mielec Lim-1 and Lim-2 (MiG-15 and MiG-15bis)1952–Tupolev Tu-21949–Yakovlev Yak-91944–Yakovlev Yak-1b1943–Yakovlev Yak-3—Ilyushin Il-21944–Petlyakov Pe-21944–Polikarpov Po-21944–Potez 25—Fokker D.VII—Oeffag Albatros D.III—SPAD XIII—Aermacchi MB-339A (T-339A)1982–2025General Atomics Reaper MQ-9A2007–2025Sukhoi Su-22M4 and Su-22UM3K1984–2025AMX International A-11B / TA-11B Ghibli1989–2024BAE Systems CT-155 Hawk2000–2024Lockheed Hercules C1/C3/C4/C51967–2023Pilatus PC-91988–2022Dassault Mirage 2000C / 2000B RDI1984–2022General Atomics MQ-1 Predator A / A+ and MQ-1C ER2005–2022Boeing (Elicotteri Meridionali) CH-47C Chinook1973–2021Bell UH-1D Iroquois1967–2021PZL-Mielec TS-11 Iskra1964–2021Panavia Tornado GR1/GR41979–2019Dassault Mirage 2000N1988–2018Dassault Super-Étendard / Super-Étendard Modernisé1978–2016Dassault Mirage F1 C/CT/CR1973–2014McDonnell Douglas F-4F Phantom II1973–2013Bell UH-1D Iroquois1967–2012Boeing CH-147C and CH-147D Chinook1974–2011Panavia Tornado F2/F31985–2011Hawker Siddeley Nimrod R11974–2011British Aerospace Harrier GR5/GR7/GR91989–2010Hawker Siddeley Nimrod MR1/MR21969–2010BAE Systems Nimrod MRA41996–2010Cessna T-37 Tweet1957–2009SIAI-Marchetti SF-260AM1977–2009Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk1983–2008SEPECAT Jaguar GR1/GR31973–2007English Electric Canberra1951–2006Dassault Mirage IV A/P1964–2005SEPECAT Jaguar A/E1973–2005Lockheed F-104G / RF-104G / TF-104G Starfighter1963–2005Panavia Tornado IDS1981–2005Canadair CT-133 Silver Star1953–2005Aeritalia F-104S / F-104S ASA / ASA-M Starfighter1969–2004Mikoyan MiG-29A / MiG-29G and MiG-29UB / MiG-29GT1990–2004Dassault Mirage III1962–2003Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-211961–2003Bell CH-135 Twin Huey1971–1999Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-231979–1999General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark1967–1998Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird1966–1998Dassault-Breguet/Dornier Alpha Jet A1979–1997Bell CH-118 Iroquois1968–1997McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II1963–1996Fouga CM.170 Magister1956–1996Pilatus P-31956–1995Fiat G.91 / G.91R / G.91T1959–1995Canadair CF-116 Freedom Fighter (CF-5)1968–1995Hawker Hunter1958–1994Dassault Mirage III C/E/B/R1961–1994Fouga CM.175 Zéphyr1959–1994Aeritalia G.91Y1970–1994McDonnell Douglas RF-4E Phantom II1971–1994Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR1/GR31969–1994Blackburn Buccaneer S21969–1994Hawker Hunter1954–1994LTV A-7D Corsair II1968–1993BAC Jet Provost1955–1993Handley Page Victor B1/B2/K21957–1993Cessna A-37 Dragonfly1967–1992McDonnell Douglas Phantom FG1/FGR21969–1992PZL-Mielec Lim-5, Lim-5P, Lim-5M and Lim-6 (MiG-17)1956–1992Northrop and McDonnell Douglas YF-231990–1991Lockheed F-104G, RF-104G, TF-104G and F-104F Starfighter1960–1991Avro Shackleton MR1/MR2/MR3/AEW21951–1991de Havilland Vampire1946–1990Aermacchi MB-3261961–1990Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-211962–1990Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23 and MiG-23BN1978–1990Sukhoi Su-22M4 and Su-22UM3K1984–1990Aero L-39ZO Albatros1977–1990Sukhoi Su-22M4 and Su-22UM3K1990–1990de Havilland Canada CP-121 Tracker (CS2F)1968–1990Sukhoi Su-7BM, Su-7BKL and Su-7U1964–1990Convair F-106 Delta Dart1959–1988English Electric Lightning1959–1988Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star1948–1987McDonnell CF-101 Voodoo1961–1987Lockheed F-104G and RF-104G Starfighter1963–1986Canadair CF-104 Starfighter1962–1986de Havilland Venom1954–1984Republic F-105 Thunderchief1958–1984Avro Vulcan B1/B21956–1984McDonnell F-101 Voodoo1957–1982Dassault Mystère IVA1955–1982Fiat G.91R/3, G.91T/3 and G.91R/4 Gina1960–1982Pilatus P-21947–1981Junkers Ju 52/3m1939–1981Avro Canada CF-100 Canuck1951–1981North American F-100 Super Sabre1954–1979Folland Gnat T11962–1979Lockheed YF-121963–1978Dassault Super Mystère B21957–1977Canadair Sabre (CL-13 Mk 2 to Mk 6)1950–1977Gloster Meteor1944–1977Ilyushin Il-28, Il-28R and Il-28U1952–1977Convair F-102 Delta Dagger1956–1976Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star / Silver Star1951–1976Lockheed T-33A T-Bird1956–1976Lockheed F-104 Starfighter1958–1975Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-19P and MiG-19PM1957–1974Douglas A-1 Skyraider1963–1972English Electric Canberra B.61954–1972de Havilland Vampire1946–1972Republic F-84 Thunderjet and Thunderstreak1947–1971Convair B-58 Hustler1960–1970Lockheed CP-122 Neptune1955–1970Boeing B-47 Stratojet1951–1969Northrop F-89 Scorpion1950–1969North American XB-70 Valkyrie1964–1969de Havilland Canada CS2F-3 Tracker1966–1968Canadair T-33 Silver Star1955–1968Canadair T-33 Silver Star, army co-operation1953–1968Bell CH-118 Iroquois1968–1968de Havilland Canada CS2F Tracker COD1964–1968Gloster Javelin1956–1968Republic F-84F Thunderstreak1956–1967de Havilland Canada CS2F-2 Tracker1960–1967Republic RF-84F Thunderflash1958–1966Canadair CL-13B Sabre Mk.5 and Mk.61958–1966North American F-86K Sabre Dog1959–1966North American F-86 Sabre1949–1965Avro Lancaster Mk.X1944–1965Vickers Valiant1955–1965BAC TSR-21964–1965North American Mitchell1942–1963de Havilland Mosquito1941–1963Consolidated Canso and Catalina1941–1962McDonnell F2H-3 Banshee1955–1962de Havilland Venom1952–1962Dassault MD.450 Ouragan1952–1961SNCASE Mistral (de Havilland Vampire)1949–1961North American Mustang Mk.IV1947–1961Ilyushin Il-10 and Avia B-331949–1961Boeing B-29 Superfortress1944–1960Grumman Avenger AS.3 (TBM-3E)1950–1960Grumman CS2F-1 Tracker1957–1960Bristol Beaufighter1940–1960Morane-Saulnier MS.4061939–1959Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress1938–1959Convair B-36 Peacemaker1948–1959Lockheed F-94 Starfire1950–1959Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow1958–1959Grumman Avenger AEW Mk 3W21955–1959North American P-51 Mustang1948–1958Lockheed P-80 and F-80 Shooting Star1945–1958de Havilland Vampire F.31946–1958North American P-51 Mustang1942–1957Supermarine Spitfire1938–1957Canadair Sabre F41953–1956Avro Lancaster1942–1956Yakovlev Yak-231950–1956Savoia-Marchetti S.M.79 Sparviero1936–1955North American P-51D Mustang1945–1954Fairey Firefly AS.51946–1954Republic P-47 Thunderbolt1942–1953Vickers Wellington1938–1953Hawker Tempest1944–1953Handley Page Halifax1940–1952Macchi C.205V Veltro1943–1951de Havilland Mosquito1943–1951Fiat G.55 Centauro1943–1950Supermarine Spitfire1940–1950Messerschmitt Bf 1091939–1949Lockheed P-38 Lightning1941–1949Fairey Firefly FR.I and F.I1946–1949Fairey Battle1937–1949Hawker Hurricane1939–1948Fairey Swordfish Mk II and Mk III1946–1948Handley Page Halifax1944–1947Hawker Hurricane1937–1947North American Mustang III/IV1942–1947de Havilland Mosquito1942–1947Consolidated B-24 Liberator1941–1946Macchi C.200 Saetta1939–1946Curtiss Kittyhawk and Tomahawk1941–1946Short Stirling1940–1946North American Mitchell1942–1946North American Mustang III1944–1946Supermarine Spitfire1941–1946Handley Page Halifax1943–1946Fiat C.R.42 Falco1939–1945Fiat G.50 Freccia1939–1945Reggiane Re.2000 Falco1940–1945CANT Z.1007 Alcione1939–1945Messerschmitt Bf 1091937–1945Focke-Wulf Fw 1901941–1945Junkers Ju 87 Stuka1937–1945Heinkel He 1111935–1945Junkers Ju 52/3m1935–1945Messerschmitt Bf 1101937–1945Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe1944–1945Messerschmitt Me 410 Hornisse1943–1945Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet1944–1945Dornier Do 171937–1945Dornier Do 2171941–1945Arado Ar 234 Blitz1944–1945Heinkel He 219 Uhu1943–1945Henschel Hs 1291942–1945Fieseler Fi 156 Storch1937–1945Focke-Wulf Fw 189 Uhu1940–1945Hawker Typhoon1941–1945Boulton Paul Defiant1939–1945Armstrong Whitworth Whitley1937–1945Gloster Gladiator1937–1945Curtiss Tomahawk and Kittyhawk1941–1945Boeing Fortress1941–1945Consolidated Catalina1941–1945Vickers Wellington1940–1945Avro Lancaster1944–1945Consolidated Liberator1943–1945Amiot 1431935–1944Heinkel He 177 Greif1942–1944Henschel Hs 1231936–1944Grumman Avenger, HMS Nabob1944–1944Bristol Blenheim1937–1944Hawker Hurricane1940–1944Fiat C.R.321935–1943Fiat B.R.20 Cicogna1936–1943Reggiane Re.2000 Catapultabile1942–1943Handley Page Hampden1938–1943Morane-Saulnier MS.4061938–1940Curtiss H-75 Hawk1939–1940Breguet 191924–1940Potez 251925–1940Arado Ar 681936–1940Gloster Gauntlet1935–1940Fairey Battle1940–1940Hawker Hart1930–1939Hawker Fury1931–1939Handley Page Heyford1933–1939PZL.37 Łoś1938–1939PZL P.111935–1939Breguet 191926–1939Heinkel He 511935–1938Bristol Bulldog1929–1937Avro 5041913–1933Vickers Vimy1919–1933Armstrong Whitworth Siskin1924–1932Bristol F.2 Fighter1917–1932Bristol F.2B Fighter1920–1932Airco DH.9 and DH.9A1918–1931Sopwith Snipe1918–1926SPAD S.XIII1917–1923Sopwith Camel1917–1920Airco DH.41917–1920Handley Page O/4001918–1920Sopwith Dolphin1918–1919Albatros D.III1917–1918Fokker Dr.I Dreidecker1917–1918Fokker D.VII1918–1918Fokker D.VIII (E.V)1918–1918Gotha G.IV and G.V1917–1918Sopwith Pup1916–1918Sopwith Triplane1917–1918Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutter1916–1918SPAD S.VII1916–1918SPAD XIII1917–1918Nieuport 11 Bébé1916–1917Albatros D.I and D.II1916–1917Nieuport 111916–1917Fokker E.I to E.IV Eindecker1915–1916
The part of the collection you can touch
Fly a jet from a Swiss Air Force base.
Sion closed to the Air Force in 2017. The runway is still there, and so is a L-39 Albatros with a second seat. MiGFlug has put civilians in real military jet cockpits since 2004.