This Aircraft is the Workhorse of the US Marine Corps

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The U.S. Marine Corps is known as one of the fiercest fighting forces in the world. This is partially reflected in the aircraft that this military branch is pushing. A majority of the aircraft used by the Marines are primed for combat zones, either to transport and cover troops or to strike enemy positions. (This is every American gunship helicopter that fought the Vietnam War. )

The most widely used Marine Corps aircraft is the MV-22 Osprey. This aircraft is incredibly versatile -- why the Marines rely so heavily on it. It is capable of vertical takeoff and landing, which allows it to perform a variety of missions and transport troops in a number of environments.

The MV-22 Osprey was originally developed by Boeing and entered service in 2007. It used a twin-engine configuration which it can toggle from helicopter to aircraft in mid-flight. The Osprey can hit speeds over 300 mph and has an operational range of over 1,000 miles. This is just one of many aircraft used by the Marine Corps.

Here, 24/7 Wall St. is taking a closer look at the aircraft used by the Marine Corps. To identify the most widely used aircraft by the U.S. Marine Corps, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data from the 2024 World Air Forces report from FlightGlobal, an aviation and aerospace industry website, and ranked the aircraft by the number of units in active service. Additionally, we’ve included supplemental information on the type of aircraft, how many are in active service, top speed and armament. We have excluded training aircraft and helicopters from this list.

There are a number of other aircraft with the Marine Corps' arsenal, each playing a unique and important role for the functionality of the military as a whole. (This is every gun used by the U.S. Marines. )

Here is a look at the most active aircraft in the U.S. Marine Corps Why Are We Covering This?

On average, the U.S. spends $400 billion a year on the operation and support of its military units. In 2024, $5.7 billion was budgeted to the Marines Corps for aviation readiness. Overall, the Department of Defense has $2.02 trillion in budgetary resources which is 14.6% of the federal budget for 2024.

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