I see pictures and hear stories of aircraft struggling back to base with hundreds of bullet holes or missing engines/parts of wings or shrapnel inside the wings. How did they stay in the air after all that anti air fire and why are modern aircraft weaker than them (Iran shot down one easily)?
In: Engineering
A lot didn’t. Ultimately, if nothing structural or critical to flight (fuel systems, cockpit, etc) is hit, a plane may or may not be able to stay in flight.
That begin said, aircraft design has changed in the recent past to favor multi-role aircraft that can engage both air and ground targets. Something like an A-10 Warthog/Thunderbolt II that was built specifically for a ground attack role will have way more suitability built into its core design, as it’s far more likely to expect ground-based fire. Something that’s designed to be able to attack ground targets, function as a fighter AND and interceptor needs to be able to be fast and nimble, and the focus is on never getting spotted or hit in the first place. Redundant systems, heavy armor around critical systems are not going to be implemented due to weight, cost, and practical considerations.
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