Defense: Fighter Finalists — 2018 Photo Contest

Swedish Air Force historic flight, Saab AJS 35 Draken fighter flies over the water near Satenas.

Dewoitine D.26 Fighter and an F/A-18C of Swiss Air Force's No. 18 Sqdn. 90th Anniversary Celebration.

Old friends resting under the sky of the Torrejon Air Base, Spain. The photographer combined astrophotography with a special technique to capture this unique shot.

Major John "Rain" Waters performs a 9-g dedication pass in excess of 500 kt.  He is wrapping up his two-year stint as the F-16 Viper Demo pilot this year.

An F/A-18F Super Hornet flies in California's Death Valley with the Moon in the background.

An AV-8B Harrier II displays its  vertical flight capabilities.

 U.S. Navy F/A-18Es from VFA-131 at sunset after a storm in Fort Worth.

A Boeing E/A-18G Growler sits with its wings folded on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush (CVN-77) as the Sun rises on yet another day of air operations over the Atlantic Ocean.

NASA's C-20A with Generation Orbit's hypersonic testbed attached is flown by NASA test pilots Tim Williams and Troy Asher. NASA F-18 No. 846, flown by test pilot Jim Less and videographer Lori Losey, is flying chase. The image was captured by Jim Ross from a NASA F-15 flown by chief test pilot Nils Larson on Dec. 11, 2017.

An F-16 demonstration pilot makes an initial turnout after takeoff at Air Venture 2018 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.