ACE COMBAT 8: Wings of Theve Guides HANDBOOK
Home › Guides › Ace Combat 8 Best Planes: Mirage Early, F-35C Late, X-40 for Ace S-Ranks

Ace Combat 8 Best Planes: Mirage Early, F-35C Late, X-40 for Ace S-Ranks

Aircraft Last reviewed: Oct 1, 2026

Quick answer

There is no official ranking of the best planes. Bandai Namco only gives each plane a role and a short description.[1] The picks below come from named guide writers, and we say who recommends what.

  • Buying route (Power Up Gaming, Serhii Patskan): Mirage 2000-5 early, F/A-18E or F/A-18F mid-game, then the F-35C and the F-22A late.[2]
  • Top tier (same author's tier list): F-22A Raptor, Su-57 Felon, ADFX-02 Morgan -PIXY-, FA-36 Game, Su-47 Berkut and Su-35S Flanker-E.[3]
  • For Ace-difficulty S-ranks (PowerPyx): "It's Usually the X-40". On missions with clustered ground targets, PowerPyx says a plane with area-of-effect air-to-ground weapons does better.[4]

Recommended planes side by side

Prices are first-copy MRP from the community wiki. Not listed means no price has been published there yet.[5]

Plane Who recommends it Their reason When you can get it First copy (MRP)
Mirage 2000-5 Power Up Gaming route: early-game priority[2] A stable, balanced plane that flies very well (Power Up Gaming).[3] Bandai Namco says its fly-by-wire gives it "inherently excellent flying stability".[1] Early tree 130,000
F/A-18E Super Hornet Power Up Gaming route: mid-game[2] More air-to-air special weapon options, plus many part slots[2] Tree 240,000
F/A-18F Super Hornet Power Up Gaming route: mid-game; also listed for ground attack[2] A good pick for ground-attack loadouts[2] Tree 240,000
F-35C Lightning II Power Up Gaming route: late game[2] "very versatile and beginner-friendly among high-end options"[2] Tree Not listed
F-22A Raptor Power Up Gaming: S tier, late-game target[3][2] He calls it the top stealth air option, with internal weapon bays and "overwhelming dogfight and missile superiority"[3] Tree Not listed
Su-57 Felon Power Up Gaming: S tier[3] Stealth fighter with thrust vectoring. He says it compares to the F-22.[2] Tree Not listed
Su-47 Berkut / Su-35S Flanker-E Power Up Gaming: S tier[3] Su-47: forward-swept-wing agility. Su-35S: very manoeuvrable with a heavy payload.[3] Tree Not listed
FA-36 Game Power Up Gaming: S tier[3] An original Ace Combat 8 jet with high performance[3] After the campaign, once you own an F-22A, F-35C or Su-57[6] 750,000
X-40 Nightmare PowerPyx: the usual pick for Ace S-ranks[4] Its UAVT special weapon works on both air and ground targets. Ammo is limited.[4] After the campaign, same gate as the FA-36[7] 1,000,000
ADFX-02 Morgan -PIXY- Power Up Gaming: S tier[3] An experimental plane with unique abilities[3] Season 1 Premium Ace Pass. In the campaign, only after you clear every mission.[8] Not sold for MRP

One conflict to know about: Power Up Gaming says the F/A-18E has 6 Body and 6 Arms slots.[2] The community wiki lists 5 Body, 5 Arms and 3 Misc.[9] We have not seen the in-game screen, so treat both as unconfirmed.

Full prices, unlock gates and part slots for every plane: aircraft tree unlocks. The X-40 has its own page: X-40 Nightmare.

Planes the same tier list rates lowest

Power Up Gaming puts the MiG-21bis Fishbed and F-4E Phantom II at the bottom (D tier). It says the MiG-21bis has very tricky controls and limited overall capability, and the F-4E is outpaced by modern jets.[3] Bandai Namco's own description agrees that the MiG-21bis has "tricky controls" that "ask a lot of the pilot".[1]

How to choose your next plane

If your goal is not covered above, these checks come straight from the sources:

  1. Match the plane to the mission. For dogfights and air superiority, Power Up Gaming prefers the F-22A, Su-57, Su-47, Typhoon and Su-35S. For ground attack it prefers the F/A-18F, F-35C, and attackers or multirole planes with good air-to-ground options.[2] Read the briefing first: it shows which enemy types you will face.[10]
  2. Look at the special weapons, not just the jet. Each plane carries its own set. Power Up Gaming suggests area weapons such as FAEB, SFFS and UGB against dense ground targets.[2] PowerPyx recommends area-of-effect air-to-ground weapons over the X-40 on cluster-heavy missions.[4] The weapons for each plane are listed on aircraft tree unlocks.
  3. Check the part slots. Body parts can make the plane less agile, and too many arms parts can slow your reload and hurt missile accuracy, according to the developers.[11] Slot counts differ by plane.[5] Details: upgrade parts.
  4. Watch for carrier missions. In Campaign mode, some missions only allow planes that can take off from a carrier. In Free Mission you can fly any plane you own.[12]
  5. Test in Free Mission before committing MRP. Power Up Gaming suggests using Free Mission to try out different planes and upgrades.[2]
  6. Buy extra copies for your wingmen. PowerPyx suggests buying additional planes of each type so your wingmen fly better aircraft.[12] Extra copies cost much less than the first.[13]

Not confirmed yet

  • An official ranking, or any measured comparison (damage, clear times) between planes. The tier list above is one writer's view.
  • First-copy MRP prices for the F-22A, F-35C, Su-57 and most other high-end jets.

Where the MRP comes from: MRP farm.

Sources & References

  1. Bandai Namco: ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE - Aircraft (official site) ↩ 1, 2, 3
  2. Power Up Gaming: Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve — Best Loadouts & MRP Paths (Serhii Patskan, Sep 30, 2026) ↩ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14
  3. Power Up Gaming: Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve — Best Aircraft Tier List (Serhii Patskan, Sep 29, 2026) ↩ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
  4. PowerPyx: Ace Combat 8 All Ace S-Ranks Walkthrough (Oct 1, 2026) ↩ 1, 2, 3, 4
  5. Ace Combat Wiki (wiki.gg): Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve/Aircraft and linked aircraft pages ↩ 1, 2
  6. Ace Combat Wiki (wiki.gg): FA-36 Game ↩
  7. Ace Combat Wiki (wiki.gg): X-40 Nightmare ↩
  8. Bandai Namco: ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE official site (FAQ section) ↩
  9. Ace Combat Wiki (wiki.gg): F/A-18E Super Hornet ↩
  10. GamingAlly: Ace Combat 8: Air Combat and Flight Guide (Aras Çelik, Sep 30, 2026) ↩
  11. CGMagazine: Talking Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve—Becoming Your Own Action Star (Philip Watson, Sep 18, 2026) ↩
  12. PowerPyx: Ace Combat 8 Wings of Theve Trophy Guide & Roadmap (Jack McBastard, Sep 29, 2026) ↩ 1, 2
  13. DayOne: Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve Review (Jon "Sikamikanico" Clarke) ↩

Related Guides

Next Milestones

More answers on closely related topics.

ACE COMBAT 8 screenshot: the hangar standby screen with F/A-18C, F-2A and F-14D jets lined up
Aircraft Sourced table

Ace Combat 8 Aircraft Tree: All 34 Planes, MRP Prices and Unlocks (Partial)

All 34 Ace Combat 8 planes with official role, how to unlock, MRP price, wingman price and part slots where known. Partial list, checked Oct 1, 2026.
PROGRESSION 📖 Ace Combat 8 Upgrade Parts and Blueprints: 3 Slot Types, First Buys, ECM and Drop Tanks Progression
Progression Documented Walkthrough

Ace Combat 8 Upgrade Parts and Blueprints: 3 Slot Types, First Buys, ECM and Drop Tanks

How Ace Combat 8 upgrade parts work: Body, Arms and Misc slots by plane, which parts guides buy first, where ECM comes from, drop tanks, and online blueprints.
← Back to Guides Read our Independent Verification Policy →