Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve hands you a free F/A-18C Hornet and a huge Aircraft Tree to spend Military Result Points (MRP) on, but early points are scarce. Buying every cheap plane as it appears wastes currency you need for the jets that actually win missions. A short list of early unlocks will carry you through the first half of the campaign, and a separate set matters once you drop into the online modes.
Quick answer: In the campaign, unlock the Mirage 2000-5 first, then build toward the Rafale M and one 550,000 MRP fighter like the Su-57. Ace Combat Online uses separate credits and ranks, where the F-22A and Su-47 Berkut are the priorities.
How you unlock planes in campaign and online
Campaign aircraft come from the Aircraft Tree, bought with MRP earned by destroying targets in missions. Branches connect planes, upgrade parts, and special weapons, and every node unlocks in order, so you must buy the parts between two jets before the second jet opens. Mission clear rank sets how much MRP you take home, and purchases are permanent across campaign runs and Free Mission.
Ace Combat Online runs on its own progression. You earn credits as a mercenary pilot through mission clear ranks, with the winning team in Co-Op Assault taking home significantly more. Some jets are gated behind a rank or the Premium Ace Pass Season 1 rather than price alone.
Campaign planes do not carry over to online. The two modes share the roster but keep separate save data and separate unlocks, so you earn your online hangar from scratch.
Best early aircraft to unlock in the campaign
These are the aircraft worth buying first on a first playthrough, ordered by how early they slot into the tree. Lower-cost picks clear the opening missions cheaply, and the Rafale M and Su-57 are the destinations to save toward.
| Aircraft | Role | MRP | Key special weapons |
|---|---|---|---|
| MiG-21bis Fishbed | Fighter | 25,000 | MGP, SASM, QAAM |
| F-2A | Attacker | 130,000 | LASM, UGB, Hyper Velocity ATA |
| Mirage 2000-5 | Multirole | 130,000 | 4AAM, LASM, UGB |
| MiG-31B Foxhound | Fighter | 130,000 | LAAM, SAAM, QAAM |
| F-16C Fighting Falcon | Fighter | 180,000 | 2AAM, QAAM, LAGM |
| Gripen E | Multirole | 240,000 | SASM, 6AGM, LAAM |
| Rafale M | Multirole | 350,000 | HCAA, LACM, Long-Range ATA |
| Su-57 Felon | Fighter | 550,000 | QAAM, HCAA, LACM |
Mirage 2000-5 branches straight off your starting Hornet, which makes it the cheapest meaningful upgrade. It has strong maneuverability, six Arms slots for missile upgrades, and a loadout that covers everything you meet early: the 4AAM for swarms of aircraft, the LASM for battleships, and the UGB for wide ground targets. It is enough to clear the first ten missions while you save for later.
F-2A is an F-16-based attacker that doubles as a near-fighter. It is fast, tough, and strong against surface targets with both LASM and UGB, while the Hyper Velocity ATA missile gives it long reach against aircraft. It also opens the branch that leads toward the F-22A Raptor.
F-16C Fighting Falcon is a lightweight, agile fighter with four Body slots, five Arms slots, and three Misc slots. Its 2AAM and QAAM make it strong against the fast enemy Aces of Shadow Flight, and swapping in the LAGM lets it pivot to ground targets. It is less durable than heavier jets, but like the F-2A it is a step on the road to the F-22A.
Gripen E is a flexible multirole built around adapting mid-mission. It lacks the raw speed of heavier planes, but its upgrade slots and mix of SASM, 6AGM, and LAAM let it handle drone swarms and ground targets alike, which suits missions where the objective keeps changing.
MiG-31B Foxhound is a pure air-to-air interceptor. It only has four Arms slots, which caps its offense, and it cannot perform Post-Stall Maneuvers, but it reaches very high speeds and carries a strong ranged kit. The LAAM hits targets beyond their scanner range, while the QAAM runs down agile jets like the Rafale M or Su-47 Berkut.
Rafale M is the strongest value point in the later tree for a campaign run. One purchase covers several mission types: High-Capacity ATA missiles down nimble fighters, the LACM destroys tough land targets such as Aegis platforms and land battleships, and it still carries a powerful but hard-to-handle Long-Range ATA missile. It is also carrier-capable, which matters on sorties flown from the Endurance.
Su-57 Felon is the top stealth fighter to aim for, with six Body slots, six Arms slots, and three Misc slots for full customization. It breaks Mach 2 quickly, keeps up with the fastest targets, and carries the QAAM, HCAA, and the LACM, the strongest bombardment weapon a jet can equip. The F-22A sits at the same 550,000 MRP tier on the American side of the tree, so pick whichever branch your earlier unlocks sit closer to.
Fastest way to earn MRP
If you are short on currency before a big purchase, replay Mission 11, 24, and 28. These pay out the most MRP per run, and completed missions can be replayed for a higher rank, which raises the payout again. A few repeats there will cover a 350,000 or 550,000 MRP jet much faster than grinding story progress alone.
Best planes to unlock first in Ace Combat Online
Online rewards come from multiplayer, so target these five once your rank and credits allow. Costs are in online credits, and two jets require the Premium Ace Pass Season 1 rather than credits alone.
| Aircraft | Cost | Unlock | Special weapon |
|---|---|---|---|
| F-22A | 50,000 credits | Credit purchase | QAAM |
| Su-57 Felon | 50,000 credits | Credit purchase | QAAM |
| FA-36 Game | 45,000 credits | Second Lieutenant + Ace Pass S1 | SASM |
| Su-47 Berkut | 15,000 credits | Master Sergeant | SAAM |
| ADFX-02 Morgan | — | Premium Ace Pass S1 | Special-weapon package |
F-22A sets the standard when your only concern is bringing down enemy aircraft. Stealth and formidable weapons give it an advantage from the start, while QAAMs and hard turns help it track opponents that would make a less capable jet disengage. Its drawbacks are the inability to launch from carriers and a limited range of ground-attack options.
Su-57 Felon suits pilots who want to choose when and how to engage while flying a stealth aircraft. QAAMs serve it well in close dogfights, and its long-range weapons keep it effective as missions alternate between aerial and ground targets. It also makes a capable aircraft to assign to a wingman.
FA-36 Game is an original jet built as a do-everything option. Its forgiving handling and SASM-led kit let it swing between aerial combat and wider attack roles, making it a comfortable step up from the starter aircraft. It needs Second Lieutenant rank and the Premium Ace Pass Season 1 before it appears for purchase.
Su-47 Berkut is the least expensive standout, costing 15,000 credits and becoming available at Master Sergeant rank. Its forward-swept wings allow maneuvers that most aircraft cannot replicate, and its SAAM is rewarding for pilots already skilled at controlling speed and using High-G turns. That agility can be difficult to handle without experience, giving the plane a high skill ceiling.
ADFX-02 Morgan is the top premium option, with an exceptionally varied special-weapon loadout that supports multiple approaches to combat. Getting access is the catch: it comes through Premium Ace Pass Season 1, not a direct credit purchase.
A few more jets sit just below these. The Typhoon carries a huge payload once you control engagement distance, the Su-35S Flanker-E suits boom-and-zoom play, and the F-35C Lightning II and Rafale M are carrier-capable multiroles that avoid bad matchups across mixed missions.
Some campaign missions restrict you to carrier-capable aircraft. Have an F-35C or Rafale M available in your hangar so a powerful land-based fighter isn’t grounded when a sortie launches from a carrier.
In either mode, the most reliable approach is to cover air and ground duties with a compact range of roles, then spend whatever currency remains on the specialists above. In the Aircraft Tree, check that the plane is marked as purchased; for online play, its listing in the Ace Combat store should offer it for purchase once you meet the rank requirement and have saved enough credits.
