The biggest fighter jet in the world is the Tupolev Tu-128 “Fiddler,” a Soviet interceptor measuring 98 feet 7 inches (30.06 m) from nose to tail. No fighter that reached production has ever been longer.
Length is only one answer, though. The heaviest fighter ever to enter service is the MiG-31 Foxhound at 102,000 pounds (46,200 kg), and the widest is the F-14 Tomcat, whose wings spread to 64 feet 2 inches (19.55 m).
The list below ranks the 12 biggest fighter jets by overall length, the measure most people picture when they ask the question. The full wingspan and maximum takeoff weight orders follow, so you can see exactly where each aircraft wins. All figures are current as of 2026.
How we measure "biggest"
Three measures give three different winners, so this article names all three rather than pretending one is definitive. Main ranking: overall length, production fighters and interceptors only. Wingspan is given at full spread for swing-wing types, with the swept figure noted. Weight is maximum takeoff weight, not empty weight. Prototypes that never entered service are ranked separately, the same way record aircraft are separated from operational ones in speed lists.
| # | Aircraft | Length | Wingspan | Max takeoff weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tupolev Tu-128 Fiddler | 98 ft 7 in (30.06 m) | 57 ft 6 in (17.53 m) | 95,000 lb (43,000 kg) |
| 2 | Mikoyan MiG-25 Foxbat | 78 ft 2 in (23.82 m) | 45 ft 11 in (14.00 m) | 81,000 lb (36,700 kg) |
| 3 | Sukhoi Su-34 Fullback | 76 ft 7 in (23.34 m) | 48 ft 3 in (14.70 m) | 99,500 lb (45,100 kg) |
| 4 | Mikoyan MiG-31 Foxhound | 74 ft 3 in (22.62 m) | 44 ft 2 in (13.46 m) | 102,000 lb (46,200 kg) |
| 5 | General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark | 73 ft 6 in (22.40 m) | 63 ft 0 in (19.20 m) | 100,000 lb (45,400 kg) |
| 6 | Sukhoi Su-30 | 71 ft 11 in (21.93 m) | 48 ft 3 in (14.70 m) | 76,000 lb (34,500 kg) |
| 7 | Sukhoi Su-35 Flanker-E | 71 ft 10 in (21.90 m) | 50 ft 2 in (15.30 m) | 76,000 lb (34,500 kg) |
| 8 | Chengdu J-20 Mighty Dragon | About 69 ft 7 in (21.2 m) | About 42 ft 8 in (13.01 m) | About 81,600 lb (37,000 kg) |
| 9 | Sukhoi Su-57 Felon | 65 ft 11 in (20.10 m) | 46 ft 3 in (14.10 m) | 75,000 lb (34,000 kg) |
| 10 | McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle | 63 ft 8 in (19.40 m) | 42 ft 10 in (13.05 m) | 81,000 lb (36,700 kg) |
| 11 | Grumman F-14 Tomcat | 62 ft 8 in (19.10 m) | 64 ft 2 in (19.55 m) | 74,500 lb (33,700 kg) |
| 12 | Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor | 62 ft 1 in (18.90 m) | 44 ft 6 in (13.56 m) | 83,500 lb (37,900 kg) |
1. Tupolev Tu-128 “Fiddler”
The Tupolev Tu-128 is 98 feet 7 inches (30.06 m) long with a 57 foot 6 inch (17.53 m) wingspan and a maximum takeoff weight of 95,000 pounds (43,000 kg). It first flew in March 1961 and is the only fighter on this list derived directly from a bomber design.
That lineage explains the size. The Soviet Union needed to patrol thousands of miles of empty Arctic and Siberian airspace where there were no radar stations and no runways, so the Tu-128 carried its own huge radar, its own enormous fuel load, and four long-range missiles.
It was never meant to dogfight. The Tu-128 was a flying missile truck built to intercept NATO bombers far from home, and roughly 200 were built before the type was retired in 1990.
2. Mikoyan MiG-25 “Foxbat”
The MiG-25 is 78 feet 2 inches (23.82 m) long, spans 45 feet 11 inches (14.00 m), and has a maximum takeoff weight of 81,000 pounds (36,700 kg). It is the second longest fighter ever to enter production.
Be aware that published lengths for the Foxbat vary. Some references quote around 64 feet 10 inches for the airframe alone, while specification tables including the full nose section give 78 feet 2 inches. This article uses the longer overall figure that MILAVIA and our own aircraft database carry.
Built from nickel steel rather than titanium, the MiG-25 was a Mach 2.8 interceptor designed to chase down the American B-70 bomber that was ultimately cancelled. It is also one of the fastest fighter jets ever flown.
3. Sukhoi Su-34 “Fullback”
The Su-34 is 76 feet 7 inches (23.34 m) long with a 48 foot 3 inch (14.70 m) wingspan and a maximum takeoff weight of 99,500 pounds (45,100 kg). It is the longest fighter still in production anywhere in the world.
The Fullback is a strike aircraft built on Su-27 foundations, with a flattened, side-by-side two-seat cockpit that crews enter through the nose landing gear bay. That cockpit is armoured with titanium, and there is room behind the seats to stand up.
It first flew in 1990 but did not formally enter Russian service until 2014. It has been the workhorse of Russian tactical strike operations ever since.
4. Mikoyan MiG-31 “Foxhound”
The MiG-31 is 74 feet 3 inches (22.62 m) long, spans 44 feet 2 inches (13.46 m), and tops out at 102,000 pounds (46,200 kg). That makes it the heaviest fighter jet ever to enter operational service, on any air force’s books.
It is a hardened, strengthened development of the MiG-25 with two crew and a Zaslon phased-array radar that was the first of its kind fitted to any fighter. Four Foxhounds flying in formation can sweep a corridor of airspace roughly 500 miles wide.
Fifty years after its first flight, the MiG-31 is still Russia’s fastest and highest-flying interceptor, and it is the launch platform for the Kinzhal air-launched missile.
5. General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark
The F-111 is 73 feet 6 inches (22.40 m) long and weighs up to 100,000 pounds (45,400 kg) at takeoff, the second heaviest fighter-designated aircraft ever fielded. Its wings spread to 63 feet (19.20 m) and sweep back to roughly 32 feet.
It was the first production aircraft with variable-sweep wings, afterburning turbofans, and terrain-following radar, a combination that let it fly at 200 feet in the dark at supersonic speed.
The F designation was politics rather than description. The US Air Force retired its last F-111s in 1996, and Australia flew the type until 2010.
6. Sukhoi Su-30 “Flanker-C”
The Su-30 is 71 feet 11 inches (21.93 m) long with a 48 foot 3 inch (14.70 m) wingspan and a maximum takeoff weight of 76,000 pounds (34,500 kg). It is a two-seat, long-endurance development of the Su-27.
Every Flanker variant is enormous by Western standards because the original Su-27 was sized to intercept targets across the whole depth of the Soviet Union without refuelling.
The Su-30 has been exported more widely than any other big Russian fighter, with operators including India, China, Algeria, Vietnam, Malaysia and Kazakhstan.
7. Sukhoi Su-35 “Flanker-E”
The Su-35 is 71 feet 10 inches (21.90 m) long with a maximum takeoff weight of 76,000 pounds (34,500 kg). Its 50 foot 2 inch (15.30 m) wingspan is the widest of any fighter currently in production.
It is essentially an Su-27 rebuilt with a strengthened airframe, thrust-vectoring engines and modern avionics, and it is the most agile large fighter flying.
Size buys the Su-35 something concrete: internal fuel of about 25,000 pounds, roughly triple what a single-engine fighter carries, which is why it can patrol for hours without a tanker.
8. Chengdu J-20 “Mighty Dragon”
The J-20 is the largest stealth fighter flying, at roughly 69 feet 7 inches (21.2 m) long with a wingspan near 42 feet 8 inches (13.01 m) and an estimated maximum takeoff weight around 81,600 pounds (37,000 kg).
Every one of those numbers is an estimate. China has never released official dimensions, and credible published lengths range from about 66 to 75 feet depending on the analysis method, so treat its exact placement on this list as approximate.
What is not in doubt is the fleet. Estimates for 2026 put J-20 numbers somewhere between 300 and 500 airframes, making it the second most numerous stealth fighter in the world behind the F-35. Our guide to stealth fighter jets covers the full field.
9. Sukhoi Su-57 “Felon”
The Su-57 is 65 feet 11 inches (20.10 m) long, spans 46 feet 3 inches (14.10 m), and has a maximum takeoff weight of 75,000 pounds (34,000 kg).
It is shorter than the Su-30 and Su-35 it will eventually replace, because stealth rewards a tighter, cleaner planform. It is still wider across the wing than any American fighter in service.
The Felon first flew in 2010. Deliveries have been slow, with total production still measured in the dozens rather than the hundreds.
10. McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle
The F-15E is 63 feet 8 inches (19.40 m) long with a 42 foot 10 inch (13.05 m) wingspan and a maximum takeoff weight of 81,000 pounds (36,700 kg). It is the biggest fighter currently flying in US Air Force colours.
Conformal fuel tanks hugging the fuselage sides let it carry a bomber’s worth of ordnance and still fight its way home. The airframe underneath is the same one that gave the F-15 family its air combat record.
The new-build F-15EX Eagle II shares the same 81,000 pound maximum takeoff weight and keeps the line open into the 2040s.
11. Grumman F-14 Tomcat
The F-14 Tomcat is 62 feet 8 inches (19.10 m) long with a maximum takeoff weight of 74,500 pounds (33,700 kg). Wings fully forward, it spans 64 feet 2 inches (19.55 m), the widest of any fighter ever built.
Swept fully back for high-speed flight, that span shrinks to about 38 feet. The Tomcat therefore holds and loses the wingspan title depending entirely on what the wings are doing at the time.
The US Navy retired the F-14 in 2006. Iran, the only export customer, still keeps a handful airworthy, which makes it one of the oldest fighter planes still in service.
12. Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
The F-22 Raptor is 62 feet 1 inch (18.90 m) long and spans 44 feet 6 inches (13.56 m), but takes off at up to 83,500 pounds (37,900 kg). It is the heaviest fighter in American service.
That combination is the whole point of the design. Fuel and weapons ride inside the airframe rather than on external pylons, so the Raptor is dense rather than long.
It makes the F-22 the clearest illustration of why “biggest” needs a definition. On length it finishes last here, on weight it beats every fighter except four much larger aircraft.
Fighter jet size comparison: the three measures side by side
Rank the same aircraft by wingspan instead of length and the order changes completely. Two swing-wing designs from the 1960s take the top places, and every modern stealth fighter drops to the bottom.
| # | Aircraft | Wingspan (full spread) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grumman F-14 Tomcat | 64 ft 2 in (19.55 m) |
| 2 | General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark | 63 ft 0 in (19.20 m) |
| 3 | Tupolev Tu-128 Fiddler | 57 ft 6 in (17.53 m) |
| 4 | Sukhoi Su-35 Flanker-E | 50 ft 2 in (15.30 m) |
| 5 | Sukhoi Su-30 and Su-34 | 48 ft 3 in (14.70 m) |
| 6 | Sukhoi Su-57 Felon | 46 ft 3 in (14.10 m) |
Rank by maximum takeoff weight and the order changes again. This is the measure that best reflects how much aircraft is actually leaving the runway, fuel and weapons included.
| # | Aircraft | Max takeoff weight |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mikoyan MiG-31 Foxhound | 102,000 lb (46,200 kg) |
| 2 | General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark | 100,000 lb (45,400 kg) |
| 3 | Sukhoi Su-34 Fullback | 99,500 lb (45,100 kg) |
| 4 | Tupolev Tu-128 Fiddler | 95,000 lb (43,000 kg) |
| 5 | Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor | 83,500 lb (37,900 kg) |
| 6 | MiG-25 Foxbat and F-15E Strike Eagle | 81,000 lb (36,700 kg) |
Three measures, three different winners, and no way to collapse them into a single number. If you want to see two specific aircraft scaled against each other, our aircraft size comparison tool puts any two types side by side.
The biggest fighter jet ever built never entered service
The Lockheed YF-12A is longer, wider and vastly heavier than anything in the ranking above. It measures 101 feet 7 inches (30.97 m), spans 55 feet 7 inches (16.95 m), and takes off at up to 140,000 pounds (63,500 kg).
It was an interceptor version of the Blackbird, built to cruise at Mach 3 and 80,000 feet and shoot down Soviet bombers before they reached North America. Three were built, and the programme was cancelled in 1968 before any entered squadron service.
Speed lists separate operational aircraft from record-breakers for the same reason, and the same logic applies here. The YF-12 is the biggest fighter ever flown; the Tu-128 is the biggest one any air force actually operated.
The biggest fighter weighed more than a fully loaded airliner
At 140,000 pounds, the YF-12A had a higher maximum takeoff weight than most narrow-body airliners of its era, and nearly double the weight of an F-22. It carried three Hughes AIM-47 missiles in internal bays and a radar that could track targets over 400 miles away. Only three were built, and one survives today at the National Museum of the US Air Force.
The biggest fighter jet in service today
Restrict the question to aircraft actually flying with an air force in 2026 and the Tu-128, MiG-25, F-111 and F-14 all drop out. Two Russian aircraft are left at the top.
The Su-34 is the longest fighter in service at 76 feet 7 inches (23.34 m). The MiG-31 is the heaviest at 102,000 pounds (46,200 kg), and the Su-35 is the widest at 50 feet 2 inches (15.30 m).
No Western fighter comes close on any of the three. That is a design philosophy rather than an accident, and it is why the best fighter jets in the world are not simply the biggest ones.
The biggest fighter jet in the US
Among American fighters flying today, the F-15E Strike Eagle and F-15EX Eagle II are the longest at 63 feet 8 inches (19.40 m), and the F-22 Raptor is the heaviest at 83,500 pounds (37,900 kg).
Go back through retired types and the answer changes to the F-111 on weight and the F-14 on wingspan. The F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, often assumed to be the big one, is shorter than all of them at just over 60 feet.
American designers stopped chasing size decades ago, trading raw dimensions for stealth, sensors and networking. For a full breakdown of the current fleet, see our guide to the types of US fighter jets.
But is the F-111 really a fighter?
Reasonably, no. The F-111 carried a fighter designation for procurement reasons but had no gun in most variants, no air-to-air mission, and flew its whole career as a strike aircraft. The Tu-128 has a similar problem: it was an interceptor built on bomber foundations that could not manoeuvre with anything. Lists that exclude both put the Su-34 first on length and the MiG-31 first on weight. We include them because the official designation is the only consistent line available, and we say plainly what each aircraft actually did.
Why the biggest fighters are almost all Russian
Seven of the twelve aircraft above were designed in the Soviet Union or Russia. That is a direct consequence of geography.
Defending 11 time zones with few forward bases and limited aerial refuelling meant fighters had to carry their own fuel, their own long-range radar and their own heavy missiles. Every one of those requirements adds size.
Western air forces solved the same problem with tankers, airborne early warning aircraft and a global base network, so their fighters could stay smaller. Cost pushed the same way, since bigger airframes are more expensive to buy and to fly, as our list of the most expensive fighter planes shows.
Fighters are still small aircraft in absolute terms. Even the Tu-128 is dwarfed by the transports and bombers in our ranking of the biggest aircraft in the world, where the winning Antonov An-225 was nearly three times its length.
Sources and references used for research and fact-checking.
- U.S. Air Force, F-22 Raptor Fact Sheet
- U.S. Air Force, F-15E Strike Eagle Fact Sheet
- National Museum of the United States Air Force, Lockheed YF-12A
- MILAVIA, Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25 Foxbat Specifications
- Airforce Technology, MiG-31 Foxhound Interceptor Aircraft
- Airforce Technology, Su-34 (Su-32) Fullback Fighter Bomber
- MigFlug, Tu-128 Fiddler: The Biggest Fighter Ever Built
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Articles credited to the AeroCorner Editorial Team are created or maintained by multiple aviation contributors working under a shared editorial framework. Content is researched using authoritative aviation sources and reviewed to ensure clarity, technical accuracy, and consistency across AeroCorner.