RAY ALDERMAN, VITA STANDARDS ORGANIZATION
Readers might think that first generation fighters are propeller-driven aircraft, but that’s not the case. All lists start with jet fighters, not biplanes and monoplanes. Harmonizing those five lists would be messy, cause you to question my analytical capabilities, and run roughshod over your patience. So let’s use the over-simplified definitions below for this discussion:
1st Gen: 1950s subsonic aircraft that have the speeds and capabilities of propeller driven planes (F-86, MIG-15, etc.)
2nd Gen: 1960s transonic aircraft (F-105, F-106, MIG-19, MIG-21, Chinese J-7, etc.)
3rd Gen: 1970s supersonic aircraft (F-4, MIG-23/24/25/27/30, etc.)
4th Gen: 1980s fast but more maneuverable fighters (F-14, F-15, F-16, MIG-29, MIG-31, SU-27, SU-33, Chinese J-10, etc.)
4.5 Gen: 1990s jets with limited stealth (F/A-18, SU-34/35, Rafale, Eurofighter, Chinese J-20, etc.)
5th Gen: 2000s more stealthy fighters (F-22, F-35, PAK-FA, Chinese J-31)
6th Gen: 2020s super stealthy jets, networked, manned or unmanned, with directed energy weapons (the new F/X in design)
If you like, you can go digging through all the differences in the lists at <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jet_fighter_generations>. They are too diverse and complex for us to deal with in this cursory article.
http://mil-embedded.com/guest-blogs/generations-of-fighter-aircraft-and-the-f-35-vs-fa-18-arguments/
