A closer look at the nation's speed kings.

Modern fighter jets are designed to reach high altitudes quickly, giving pilots a major tactical advantage in combat. Rapid climb performance allows aircraft to intercept enemy targets faster, escape ...

Compared to the period from the first fighters up until the 1960s or 1970s, modern fighter jets' top speeds have been deprioritized for decades. Between World War I and World War II and then into the ...

To this day, the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird remains the fastest manned, air-breathing aircraft ever to enter service. It was ...