Many think of war as either one-on-one combat or trench battle; tending to forget that there were also battles going on above the soldiers’ heads. Many mid-air skirmishes took place over the years of war. Here are some of the top air battles in history.
Mihiel Air Battle – World War I, 1918
Bekaa Valley Turkey Shoot, 1982
![IAF F-15 at Tel Nof Airbase, marked for shooting down two Syrian aircraft](https://www.warhistoryonline.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/64/2015/12/F-15A-658-IAF-640x361.jpg)
Great Marianas Turkey Shoot, World War II, 1944
![Fighter aircraft contrails mark the sky over Task Force 58, June 19, 1944](https://www.warhistoryonline.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/64/2015/12/Fighter_plane_contrails_in_the_sky-640x519.jpg)
Air Battle over NIS, World War II, 1944
MIG-29 Vs. Two F-15s, Gulf War, 1991
Black Thursday, MIG Alley, Korean War, 1951
Second Raid on Schweinfurt, World War II, 1943
![Boeing B-17F formation over Schweinfurt, Germany, on Aug. 17, 1943. (U.S. Air Force photo)](https://www.warhistoryonline.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/64/2015/12/B-17F_formation_over_Schweinfurt_Germany_August_17_1943-640x510.jpg)
Battle of El Mansoura, Yom Kippur War, 1973
Adlertag, World War II, 1940
Ofira Air Battle, Yom Kippur War, 1973
![A MiG-17 shot down at Ofira Air Base, Yom Kippur War.](https://www.warhistoryonline.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/64/2015/12/Ofira_Air_Battle-640x454.jpg)
ME-262 Vs. Allied Bombers, World War II, 1945
![ME 262-A](https://www.warhistoryonline.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/64/2015/12/Bundesarchiv_Bild_141-2497_Flugzeug_Me_262A_auf_Flugplatz-640x442.jpg)
“F-15A-658-IAF” by User:Ynhockey – Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons.