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Aircraft possess great mobility and firepower, which enable them to affect tactical or strategic situations decisively. They can circumvent both enemy and environmental obstructions to army and naval movement. Their speed and range can render any enemy position vulnerable to surveillance or attack. Even slower aircraft such as helicopters move with a speed and agility that ground vehicles cannot match. Technological progress and military developments have created or eliminated various aircraft types. These factors made it necessary that some aircraft design features be optimized in order to produce the best machines to fly specific air missions. Furthermore, although aircraft have grown increasingly important to any military endeavor, like all weapons they are tools whose effectiveness depends on the situation and combat objective.

The outbreak of World War II marked the beginning of a new era in aerial warfare, speeding up development of piston-engine-driven aircraft leading to the inauguration of the first jet to fly a combat mission, the German Messerschmitt Me-262. Following World War II, fighting jets often determined the outcome of contemporary military confrontations as their speed, maneuverability, and destructive capability rapidly escalated.

American bombers were generally classified as light, medium, and heavy, typically differentiated by engine power, aircraft size, and payload. The bombers, operated by the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF), were further classified as tactical and strategic bombers, depending on their missions. Tactical bombers were used primarily against forward troops and equipment, whereas strategic bombers attacked cities, factories, and infrastructure.

Definition: Military aircraft designed with the primary mission of dropping bombs.