War Thunder is an excellent flight combat game, with over 600 planes and jets to choose from, divided into divided between 10 nations. Yes, 10! 

A good-looking cinematic depiction of a dogfight. 

Recently, Israel has been added to the game as a standalone nation, in the “Groundbreaking” update. Here at gamersdecide.com, we want to celebrate this big addition with a new, updated guide to the best 5 nations for aviation in the game. 

Criteria that were considered in the making of this guide were how easy the nation’s vehicles are to handle for newer players, how powerful and agile their fighters are in a dogfight, the bombing capabilities of their bombers, and how effective their CAS planes are. 

We will not be taking into consideration helicopters, we’ll work just with the standard air tech tree for each of the nations involved. We are sorry if your favorite nation didn’t make the list! 

#5 - UK/Commonwealth (Best for versatility)

Tea's ready! 

Starting with the UK/Commonwealth and the Royal Air Force. 

The UK is a force to reckon with when it comes to aviation. British and Commonwealth planes are the best when it comes to versatility since they can excel in everything if you’re an experienced enough player, but they do not lend themselves well to new players and the grind is real for the British. 

The UK/Commonwealth jets are very powerful though, especially the premium, pricey Harrier, which for some time was a real pain to deal with. In general, British fighters can soak up a good deal of bullets and can deal some good, although not outstanding damage. UK/Commonwealth bombers are very well known, like the Halifax, Lancaster, and Wellington. CAS isn’t lacking but not too viable at lower tiers. 

What UK/Commonwealth excels in:

• Versatility
• Strategic Bombing
• Bringing down enemy planes

Pick this nation if you like:

• Bombers
• Powerful jets
• Naval aircraft

Nation Overall Aircraft Score: 80/100   

#4 - Italy (Best for fighters)

An Italian Attack plane doing some aggressive pizza delivery.

Pizzas away! Get ready to fly with the Regia Aeronautica.

The Italians are very well equipped when it comes to planes, especially when dealing with Close Air Support and Fighters. They’re almost on the same level as the Germans, but their high reparation costs put them a bit lower on this guide. Strafing is also a thing they do particularly well.

Italian fighters are either agile and with mediocre firepower or harder to maneuver but with good, high-damage cannons and machine guns. You will find something that fits your style for sure, but you’ll have to compete with your fellow teammates to get kills since its a nation dominated by fighters

Italian Close air support is not the best around, but if you like dive-bombing and strafing you’re going to have a good time. Strategic bombers are not plentiful or outstanding in any particular way, but they hold their own in bombing runs and are respectable in terms of payload and defensive capabilities.

What Italy excels in:

• Dogfighting
• Close air support
• Mixed battles 

Pick this nation if you like:

• Dominating in Air Battles
• Helping your teammates out in Mix Battles
• Less grind than other major nations

Nation Overall Aircraft Score: 84/100

#3 - Germany (Best for speed and maneuverability)

2 German bombers flying high in the sky. 

Deutsche Qualität!

Germany has always been a juggernaut in War Thunder, both in ground and air battles. The Luftwaffe has always been a tough nut to crack for all players that find themselves facing one of their many and powerful planes or jets. 

German Fighters are, first and foremost, energy fighters, which means that they were designed with the principle of energy fighting in mind: climb high, dive low and fast to catch your enemies by surprise, zooming away as soon as the enemy goes up in flames. German fighters are mostly equipped with powerful cannons which can dismantle planes in seconds.

When it comes to close air support, the Germans rely mostly on dive bombers for lower tiers and rockets/strafing for higher tiers, but all CAS aircraft are within the best in their category. Bombers are very viable as well, allowing you to bring down 2 - 3 bases for each bombing run with ease. 

What Germany excels in:

• Energy Fighting
• Close air support
• Bombing

Pick this nation if you like:

• “Boom & Zoom” tactics
• Dominating ground battles from above
• Blitzing London

Nation Overall Aircraft Score: 88/100

#2 - Japan (Best for agility in dogfighting)

A Japanese Zero fighter flying over a carrier group.

The land of the rising sun is coming!

Japanese aircraft have always been deemed as the best and most agile dogfighters in the game, with planes like the Ki-43 and A6M Zero, both with the quickest turn times for War Thunder fighters. Tough they make for an agile aircraft, the Japanese also have very fragile planes and will come down after just a couple of shots.

Japanese bombers also have the same qualities as their fighters: fragile but maneuverable enough to survive some fights. All Japanese planes though have pretty good firepower, which can deal with most planes quickly enough. 

What Japan excels in:

• Turn fighting
• Out maneuvering planes
• Taking down enemy planes quickly 

Pick this nation if you like:

• Quick, agile planes
• “Glass Cannons”
• Naval Aircraft 

Nation Overall Aircraft Score: 90/100

#1 - USA (Best for close air support)

An American Fighter going for its next kill. 

USA! USA! USA!

The USA is a very powerful nation, especially we’re talking about Aviation. They have some of the most durable, well-armed aircraft in the whole game, and possibly the best CAS as well, with lots of rockets and bombs from the lower tiers up to the top.

America doesn’t necessarily have the most maneuverable fighters, and some are a bit sluggish. They don’t climb as fast as the German planes, but they can bring down planes in a matter of seconds. American planes, especially bombers, can also sustain a lot of hits before going down, which is always a big plus. 

American bombers are famous as it gets. They’re very pricey though with repair costs that go through the roof, but you should be able to deal with enemy aircraft well enough to not pay for a repair too often. 

What America excels in:

• Firepower 
• Close air support
• Destroying bases in Air Battles

Pick this nation if you like:

• Big bombing runs
• Dominating with CAS in mixed battles
• Spreading freedom all over the world

Nation Overall Aircraft Score: 93/100

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