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4%%This page's examples section is sorted alphabetically. It would be lovely if you'd maintain this, thanks.
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7[[quoteright:250:[[VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/paragoomba_with_microgoombas.png]]]]
8[[caption-width-right:250:Get a taste of [[GoombaStomp your own medicine]], Mario.]]
9->'''Finn:''' They ''fly'' now?!\
10'''Poe:''' They fly now.
11-->-- ''[[Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker]]''
12
13Simply put, a {{Mook|s}} that flies, floats, or hovers, due to either having wings, a propulsion system, or supernatural powers. They like to stay out of the player's reach, and will attack from their advantageous position. Furthermore, due to their freedom in the air, they tend to dodge rather well.
14
15Because of this, they are often used as GoddamnedBats, [[FragileFlyer relatively weak]] enemies that use their speed and agility to harass the player until they go down, especially in games where your character has DenialOfDiagonalAttack or takes {{Knockback}} (see LedgeBats for this case). Can be a type of KungFuProofMook if they're especially hard to hit normally.
16
17These guys usually tend to do one of the following:
18* Try to knock the player back via CollisionDamage or dive-bomb into them.
19* [[BombardierMook Stay out of the player's reach and shoot them or drop bombs (or other Mooks) from above.]]
20
21Airborne Mooks in platform games, usually those that try to knock the player over, are considered a huge annoyance, ''especially'' if they're [[LedgeBats the kind whose sole purpose is to knock the player]] into a {{Bottomless Pit|s}}. However, if you can GoombaSpringboard off of them they can be used to cross BottomlessPits.
22
23Airborne Mooks in FPS or action games may be smart enough to strafe around the player, making them harder to hit. Other than that, they use the same strategies above.
24
25RPG games will tend to have these guys as [[FragileSpeedster high-speed and with low hit points]]. They'll usually be a [[GoddamnedBats pain in the ass to hit]], but easy to take out. In the case where they do have high HitPoints ''and'' a high evade rate (and maybe some very damaging attacks), you're fighting a DemonicSpider.
26
27If these things appear in a TowerDefence game (especially those where you have to divert the mooks' path), they'll usually have the ability to take a [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard short cut]] and [[DungeonBypass fly over your towers to their goal]]. Certain types of towers will not work on them either.
28
29Your best bet against an Airborne Mook is, obviously, to use an AntiAir attack against them, as they'll usually be weak to it or are unable to avoid it. If such attacks are not available, then a ranged attack will do. In certain cases, it may also be possible to remove their wings with specific attacks, turning these mooks into ground-bound versions of themselves.
30----
31!!Examples
32
33[[foldercontrol]]
34
35[[folder:Action-Adventure]]
36* ''VideoGame/AlanWake'' had the Taken Crows, which were obviously extremely weak, but attacked in whole swarms to compensate. ''VideoGame/AlanWakesAmericanNightmare'' had replaced them with Taken that could temporarily turn themselves into [[TheSwarm a swarm]] of crows.
37* ''VideoGame/AmericanMcGeesAlice'':
38** The original game has only the insectoid Bolterlfies as its flying mooks. Its sequel ''VideoGame/AliceMadnessReturns'' has much greater variety. Besides Bolterfly-like enemies, there are also the Drifting Ruins, which fire shots that crystallize into spikes when they hit the ground, and the Bitch Babies, which literally vomit acid down you and can have it [[AttackReflector reflected right back at them]].
39** ''Madness Returns'' also had the Samurai Wasps: an entire class of Airborne Mooks with regular katana Wasps, the ranged archer Wasps and the elite Naginata-wielding Daimyo Wasps. There was also [[WhatCouldHaveBeen originally supposed to be]] a Wasp Queen as a level’s boss, but time constraints had [[DummiedOut forced it to be removed]] alongside the bosses of all other levels besides the [[FinalBoss the last one]].
40* ''VideoGame/ANNOMutationem'': There are various {{Attack Drone}}s that attack from afar, or conducting a self-destruct attack when in proximity. There's including Spinal Horseflies that disperse a toxin from its mouth.
41* ''VideoGame/BionicCommando'': The helicopter-pack soldiers.
42* ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow2'': The Harpies fly around and attack the protagonist with spears. His FinishingMove on them has them [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice impaled]] on [[HoistByTheirOwnPetard their own weapon]].
43* One of the enemy types in ''[[VideoGame/{{Cryostasis}} Cryostasis: Sleep Of Reason]]'' has grown large, moth-like wings and strafes around a lot, making them hard to hit.
44* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' generally has one or more of those per game.
45** ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry3DantesAwakening'' has the feminine Fallen Angels, which shield themselves from attacks with their white wings. They have to have them shattered while in flight to bring them down to the ground, then defeated before having time to regenerate them.
46** Of note are the ''Bianco Angelos'' and '' Alto Angelos'' (White Angels and High Angels in [[GratuitousItalian Broken Italian]]) in ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry4'', which combined this trope with ShieldBearingMook: their wings could also fold together as a shield.
47* ''VideoGame/FestersQuest'': The floating eyeballs and Beholders on the spaceship.
48* ''VideoGame/GobletGrotto'' had the “mosquitoes” (which looked like football-sized cross between mosquito and a fly) and the 1.5 meter tall albatrosses, which attacked with the two daggers they held in their paws.
49* ''VideoGame/HarryPotter'':
50** Plenty of those in the earlier games. There are pixies, which strafe around and throw magical projectiles, Billywigs (effectively just very large flying mosquitoes), small BooksThatBite that ambush you from certain bookshelves (as opposed to large ones that shoot spells and act like mini-bosses) and more.
51** The [[VideoGame/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban third PS2 game]] had flying torches and self-moving fireballs, only around in the Hermione levels, as she was the only one who had [[AnIcePerson the freezing spell]] needed to [[ElementalRockPaperScissors deal with them]].
52* ''VideoGame/KillerIsDead'' had the Wire drones, which would fly around and pepper you with gunfire while you’re busy fighting regular Wires on the ground. They’re more of a nuisance due to protagonist being MadeOfIron, however, and are quickly shot down with his ArmCannon.
53* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfSpyroDawnOfTheDragon'': Grublin flies have a pair of insect wings that allow them to follow Spyro and Cynder in the air, although unlike them they can't gain much altitude. Wyverns later appear as stronger airborne opponents.
54* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'':
55** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI'': The game marked the debut of Peahats, which hover in the air with the flower-like petals above their heads and tend to move from one spot to another in a straight line. Peahats have since appeared in later games in the series, usually having a more flexible movement as well as higher endurance.
56** ''VideoGame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink'', being much more of a platform game than other games in the series, has several. Bubbles bounce around the screen in diagonals and take a ton of hits to kill. Aches and Achemen are bats that swoop down from the ceiling, Achemen turn into a demon when they land and spit fireballs. Mobys are a bird that swoops down out of the sky and beelines at Link once they reach his height. Bago Bagos are a skeletal monster head that take soaring leaps across the screen while spitting stones. Ras are the animated dragon head statues and the LedgeBats of the game. Moas are flying ghostly eyeballs -- the orange ones in palaces try to drop fireballs on Link, the outdoor types just try to fly into him. Girobokkus are a slower moving, armored floating eye that are invincible when their eyes are closed. Boons are fast moving dragonflies that rain rocks down beneath them, luckily they're fragile because they're very hard to hit.
57** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'', the {{Moth|Menace}}ula enemies come in winged and wingless varieties. The winged Mothulas can have their wings shot off with ranged weapons such as the hookshot, the arrows or the boomerang, bringing them to the ground.
58** Flying variants of the octopus-like Octoroks appear from time to time. Sky Octoroks appear in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild''. The ones in the former fly through leaves attached to their tops, which they spin like propellers and spit rocks at Link when they spot him. The ones in the latter game are instead {{Living Gasbag}}s that fly thanks to inflated mantles, but can't spit rocks.[[note]]Though the Sky Octoroks carrying Black and Silver Moblins can spit rocks in ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriorsAgeOfCalamity''[[/note]] ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' also features Winged Octoroks that dodge Link's attacks by fluttering out of the way.
59** The {{Liza|rdFolk}}lfos enemies have winged relatives, the Aeralfos (from ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTriForceHeroes''), that attack Link from the air with strafing attacks.
60** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' has Guardian Skywatchers, flying variants of the [[MechaMooks Guardians]] that have the same deadly firepower as their Stalker cousins, but with the advantage of being airborne.
61** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom'' has Moth Gibdos, flying variants of the [[NightOfTheLivingMooks Gibdos]] that spawn from Gibdo hives and spit acid at Link. The same game also introduces Aerocudas, flying wyvern-like creatures that carry their fellow Ganon minions into battle, as well as various objects to drop on Link, such as Bomb Barrels and Snowballs.
62* ''VideoGame/LollipopChainsaw'' had the magical flying zombies later in the game.
63* ''VideoGame/MachineHunter'' has winged alien soldiers in the rooftop and asteroid levels.
64* ''VideoGame/{{Madagascar}}'':
65** The first film's game on Platform/GameBoyAdvance has the city pigeons [[CurbStompBattle suicidal enough]] to attack a lion.
66** ''Madagascar 2 Escape To Africa''[='=]s tie-in game has the vultures, which are a OneHitPointWonder and easy to deal with, if not the fact they often attack ''just'' as you begin balancing on ledges and can cause you to fall off.
67* ''VideoGame/NeopetsTheDarkestFaerie'' had the ranged Minion Archers and melee Minion Grunts.
68* ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'': The {{goddamned b|ats}}irds cause heavy damage, if not knock the player into a pit.
69* ''VideoGame/NinjaShadowOfDarkness'' have those pesky gargoyle mooks that attacks you en masse in the mountains.
70* ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts 2}}'': One of the new mental world enemies introduced are Regrets, ugly bug-like creatures that try to drop heavy weights on Raz. Luckily they're vulnerable to you steal
71* Serious annoyance in ''VideoGame/{{Onimusha}}'' due to melee-oriented combat meaning a limited number of ranged attack options. This is especially true in ''VideoGame/OnimushaDawnOfDreams'' where, unless you're playing as Ohatsu who uses guns, you'll have problem to deal with them, as bow is no longer available. Mages are the worst, as they constanly float out of your range while casting curses on you. The most reliable way is to use [=Lv2/3=] charged Light magic attack.
72* ''VideoGame/RememberMe'': The ''AV-48S Seraphim'' security robots fly safely beyond the reach of your melee attacks and fire energy projectiles. They’re also protected with [[DeflectorShields shields]] most of the time, forcing you to time the long-range [[HandBlast Spammer]] shots to when they lower it to get it recharged. Luckily, they’re also GlassCannon|s and are destroyed with just two [[ChargedAttack Junk Shots]].
73* ''VideoGame/ShrekTheThird'': The Dragonlings in the tie-in game. Subverted in that most of them still fly low enough to be within reach of Shrek’s fists or Arthur’s sword. An elite white dragonling doesn’t make that mistake, however, and will only come down right before attacking.
74* ''VideoGame/Warhammer40000SpaceMarine'' had the Chaos Plague Drones, which were powered by a [[SealedEvilInACan bound Nurgle demon]] and equipped with machine guns.
75 [[/folder]]
76
77[[folder:Action [=RPGs=]]]
78* The alien drones in ''VideoGame/TheBureauXCOMDeclassified''. They will frequently strafe around and either heal their allies on the ground or levitate you or the squadmates off the ground with the short-range beam, allowing other aliens to pump you full of plasma.
79* The Giant Mosquitoes in the Blighttown swamp in ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsI''. Hard to hit, annoying things. They're easily killed by the even the weakest of attacks but here is the kicker; ''They endlessly respawn.''
80* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' had plenty of those. One of its traditions has been that mage enemies (whether Heartless or Unversed) are hovering sphere-like enemies that cast from their chosen element and have two part names. First part is their colour, second is either type of song (Heartless) or a spice (Unversed).
81* Vespoids in the ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' series. They are essentially giant wasps that hover just out of reach of many of the game's weapons, before darting in, jabbing you with a stinger, and retreating. Couple this with the fact that the stinger can inflict paralysis on you, and will seemingly always do this when you're low on health/fighting a boss level enemy, and you will soon come to hate them. Also, they nearly always shatter when you DO kill them, leaving absolutely nothing to loot, making the whole exercise of killing them completely pointless (fortunately, Poison works fine if you need a body to carve). The fact that the developers have included quests based entirely on slaying large numbers of these things (an early quest has you slay 20. At this point in the game, it takes 3-5 hits to kill one of the things!) also accentuates the utter irritation they bring. However, at least they spawn almost infinitely in certain places, so you don't have to go looking everywhere for them.
82* ''VideoGame/NieR'' had robotic drones which attacked you with lightning and some sort of magic bullets.
83* ''VideoGame/TokyoJungle'' at first simply has pigeons and crows as little more than tiny snacks for predators. Eventually, however, prehistoric animals will begin to re-evolve. This includes Archaeopteryx [[DreadfulDragonfly Meganeura]], which are still not too dangerous. The same cannot be said about Pteranodon.
84* ''VideoGame/{{Turgor}}'' had the crow-like monsters appear when you’ve used up too much Color in a given area. What made them really dangerous was the fact they seldom flew freely. Instead, they [[ChestMonster pretended to be regular sprigs of Color]], only revealing themselves [[ParanoiaFuel when you’ve uprooted them]].
85[[/folder]]
86
87[[folder:Action -- Top Down]]
88* ''VideoGame/FullMetalFuries'' has the various drones, who generally use shock attacks.
89* ''VideoGame/GridWarrior'' has several, usually of the [[BlowYouAway Wind]] element. Most attacks cannot target them while they're airborne, except for lightning and ice weapons, Holy Bullets and the [[AntiAir Flak Cannon]] (which does extra damage to them). Most of them have to fly low to attack the player, allowing a player without those weapons to harm them.
90* ''VideoGame/MysticTowers'' had one of these in each tower. There’s a flying fungus named Fungafly, a so-called Bagfly, bird called Monobeak, jellyfish-like Stinger, Snapdragons and Verdragons, etc. There were usually slightly weaker than the land-bound enemies, but also faster and couldn't be avoided by levitating away from them.
91[[/folder]]
92
93[[folder:Beat 'Em Ups]]
94* ''VideoGame/LuciferRing'' have gargoyles, giant eagles, weevils and oversized insects as recurring foes. They have a habit of showing up in places with platforming elements making you fall and suffer damage in the process.
95* ''VideoGame/TheNinjaWarriorsAgain'': The remake has {{Attack Drone}}s as flying enemies, which fly high and lower themselves a bit to fire a salvo of rockets diagonally at the player character. Fortunately for your robot ninjas, these drones are also ''extremely'' fragile, taking one hit to destroy.
96[[/folder]]
97
98[[folder:First Person Shooter]]
99* ''VideoGame/Area51FPS'' has the translucent, spherical aliens that floated in the air.
100* ''VideoGame/BioShock'':
101** ''VideoGame/BioShock1'' and ''VideoGame/BioShock2'' had the security drones, which flew around thanks to having helicopter rotors, had either machine guns or rocket launchers were activated if you stayed too long in front of the security cameras on some levels. However, they became your allies if you managed to hack the security cameras, and ''[=BioShock=] 2'' allowed Delta to have the drone itself with a Hacking Dart.
102** ''VideoGame/BioshockInfinite'': The Mosquitoes will attack you on sight and have a chaingun instead of regular machine gun, but are otherwise the same. Friendly ones could also be summoned by Elizabeth from other dimensions throught the use of Tears.
103* ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'':
104** ''VideoGame/Borderlands1'': The Rakk, which were hard to hit in the air due to their attack patterns, but could be comfortably killed with shotguns once they dived down to attack you.
105** ''VideoGame/Borderlands2'':
106*** Hyperion Surveyor drones, whose main purpose is to repair the Loaders on the ground and occasionally hit back at you with weak electrical attacks.
107*** JET Loader, which is effectively a basic GUN Loader capable of temporarily transforming into a jet and attacking from the air. They aren't much of a challenge... but the same can't be said about the [[MiniMook miniature version]] that comes out of some ammo chests. Its reduced health was more than offset by ''always'' having shielding and being much harder to hit.
108* ''VideoGame/DeepRockGalactic'': The macteras are winged bugs that will either shoot you with pointy projectiles (the mactera spawns), spit globs of sticky goo or cover the map with said goo (the mactera bombers), or downright grab the player and transport them randomly around the map before dropping them after a certain amount of time, or when a fellow player shoots the damn thing. It should be noted these are playing the trope perfectly by having the spawns be able to perform some very efficient evasive manouvers when targeted. The fact the grabber has a tendency to move the captured dwarf in front of other enemies, or drop them from the highest possible point of the map can easily infuriate players against it.
109* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'':
110** Cacodemons are floating, cyclopean masses of flesh that shoot projectiles and can take a fair amount of damage before being defeated.
111** Lost Souls are floating skulls in flames that attack Doomguy by dashing towards him.
112* ''VideoGame/DoomII'': Pain Elementals are brown-colored floating demons that [[MookMaker spawn Lost Souls]]. When defeated, they split into more Lost Souls.
113* ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' has the jump/jet-packing [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Elite Rangers]] and [[KillerSpaceMonkey Brute Jumpers]], as well as the robotic Sentinels and insectoid Drones. ''VideoGame/Halo4'' adds Ranger variants of the [[HiredGuns Jackals]] and [[SlaveMooks Grunts]].
114* ''VideoGame/HalfLife2'' has the Manhacks, small drones deployed by Overwatch, whose only function is to close the distance and cut you up while they're shooting at you. There are also the Combine Choppers and Gunships, although these are either bosses or BossInMookClothing.
115%%* ''VideoGame/{{Killzone}}'': The Helghast [[AttackDrone attack drones]] in every game since the second one.
116* ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'':
117** ''VideoGame/Metroid1'': Memus, Geegas, Wavers, Mellows, Reos, Rippers, Ripper IIs, Mellas, Gamets, Gerutas, Zebbos, Holtz, Multiviolas, Rinkas... flying enemies come in a wider variety than any other type.
118** ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime'':
119*** War Wasps are small, agile targets that dart around and shoot stingers, with the Hive Mecha spawning a variant that instead rams into you. Diligent use of locking onto them will let you quickly dispatch each wasp with a few Power Beam shots, and a Missile to their [[MookMaker hive]] will stop them from spawning until the room reloads.
120*** Once you reach the uppermost part of the Space Pirates' base in Phendrana Drifts, you'll meet Space Pirates that are equipped with jetpacks. They'll shoot missiles down at you, and if defeated without freezing or incinerating them, they'll attempt to [[TakingYouWithMe divebomb you before exploding]]. After their initial encounter, jetpack Space Pirates become uncommon enemies.
121* ''VideoGame/SeriousSam'': The Harpies from the first game, and the Flying Kleers, Floaters, Hellchicks, and Levitators from ''VideoGame/SeriousSamII''. They all possess projectile attacks, whether they be fireballs (Flying Kleers), energy projectiles (Harpies, Floaters, Levitators) or ''bats'' (Hellchicks).
122* ''VideoGame/StarWarsDarkForces'' has the Imperial probes much like in the films, which flew around and attacked with electric shocks. There also were the Dark Troopers, which spent most of their time in the air due to having jet packs, were tough to kill and were always equipped with heavy weapons.
123* ''VideoGame/SystemShock'' had certain unlucky members of the crew mutated by SHODAN into some sort of a completely transparent flying ray. Besides being agile and difficult to spot, these also spat acid.
124* ''VideoGame/YouAreEmpty'': The Electricians are zombies with helicopter-like blades on their back that fly dive down and attack you with their arc welders.
125[[/folder]]
126
127[[folder:Light Gun Game]]
128* ''VideoGame/AliensExtermination'' and ''VideoGame/AliensArmageddon'' both contains flying alien monsters, including winged chestbursters, facehuggers, and alien drones with bat-like wings.
129* ''VideoGame/ProjectHornedOwl'' has robots on jet thrusters that assault the heroes in outdoor environments, plenty which shows up in the rooftop stages.
130* The final stage of the ''VideoGame/TimeCrisis'' spinoff, ''Crisis Zone'', contains mooks on jetpacks, which pursues you while you're pursuing their boss on a speedboat.
131[[/folder]]
132
133[[folder:Platform Games]]
134* ''VideoGame/AlienHominid'' has helicopters and jetpack guys, both of which can take a lot of damage.
135* ''VideoGame/AlienSoldier'':
136** The game starts off with the bugs that fly around in circles if you get close, fire a few shots and explode. Ranger and Homing traits counter them though.
137** It also has bomb-dropping birds. These get an advantage in the more claustrophobic areas, where the walls can shield them.
138** One part of the game features drones that travel in long lines and explode into suicide bullets. Thankfully, Bullet Catch ability turns those into health.
139* ''VideoGame/{{Arcuz}}'', by Armor Games, has Hornets, which can only be hit mid-jump. Same goes for the bats in the sequel.
140* ''VideoGame/AxiomVerge'' has the fly-like enemies who dive down on the player, then retreat away from their line of fire, before coming back for another go.
141* ''VideoGame/{{Bug|1995}}'' also had at least one in each level, and they were usually very annoying to defeat.
142* ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'':
143** The most infamous across the series are the dreaded Medusa Heads, such as in ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaHarmonyOfDissonance''. They don't usually turn you to stone, but they do fly in a sine wave when you're on platforms. If the platforms are moving, or the ones who ''do'' turn you to stone show up, or god-forbid ''both at the same time'', they become DemonicSpiders rather quickly.
144--->'''WebVideo/TheAngryVideoGameNerd''': These games gave me so much stress as a kid, I developed a psychological complex: whenever I see wavy lines, I get fuckin' pissed.
145** Harpies tend to show up in the clock tower stages, who love to hover above you and divebomb. Since the clock tower tends to involve lots of spinning gears, spikes, moving platforms, and yes the blasted Medusa Heads, it tends to make for [[ThatOneLevel a frantic and desperate time]].
146** Various flying demon enemies that cast magic begin popping up in later installments as well. If you don't have an aerial attack like the trusty axe subweapon they become a very serious pain in the ass, such as Earth Demon of ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaCircleOfTheMoon'' whose spell affects the ground the player's on.
147* ''VideoGame/{{Chasm}}'' features several varieties of ghosts, giant wasps, Imps who attack the player with hammers, and the dragonling creatures who spit out a SpreadShot of fireballs.
148* ''VideoGame/CommanderKeen4'' has Skypests. Can't shoot them, can only crush them with your pogo stick when they land.
149* ''VideoGame/DeathsGambit'': You'll often encounter floating crystals that pulse shockwaves around themselves. Garde Tum has [[spoiler: drones that fire actual lasers]]. There are also semi-examples, like the ghostly cultists who merely lack legs and so float off the ground instead, and the [[SuperpoweredMooks Aldwynn Ascended]], whose powers allow them to briefly sprout wings and fly up high, only to dive down for a devastating attack.
150* ''VideoGame/{{Diseviled}}'' features the Demon Bats, and their tougher cousins, the Demon Flyers. They will fly around the general area, before swooping towards the hero. Fireballs make short work of them, with only one hit needed before they fall.
151* ''VideoGame/DistortedTravesty 3'' is filled with these, everything from Castlevania's Gorgon Heads, to Mario's Lakitus. Among the first such enemies to appear are these [[https://youtu.be/2jumbxPryH8?t=4m21s bomb-dropping helicopter bots]].
152* ''Franchise/DonkeyKong'':
153** ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry1'': The debut of the vulture enemy, the Necky, who serves as the VileVulture of the Kremling Krew. Neckies simply fly around, trying to get in the Kongs' way. There are also smaller versions called Mini-Neckies, that hover in place while spitting projectiles. Finally, there are grounded Neckies that stand in one spot and throw nuts around. Master Necky is a very large Necky who serves as a boss in Monkey Mines, and a re-colored version, Master Necky Snr, is the boss of Chimp Caverns.
154** ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry2DiddysKongQuest'':
155*** Zingers hover in place or patrol a set area. As an airborne Spiny, they can't be stomped by the Kongs alone, and can only be defeated with thrown objects, strong Animal Friends, or exclamation-point barrels.
156*** Flitters are large dragonflies that have similar behaviors to Zingers (hovering, patrolling, or moving in one direction), but unlike Zingers, these can be stomped on by the Kongs.
157*** Mini-Neckies float onscreen for a moment before divebombing the Kongs' location.
158*** Kloaks float in place and throws objects and/or enemies, such as crates, Click-Clacks, and Spinies.
159** ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry3DixieKongsDoubleTrouble'': Knik-Knaks are beetle-like enemies, of which only the red ones are seen flying (yellow ones remain in the ground), and remain static in one spot.
160** ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryReturns'': Tiki Buzzes are drum-like Tikis that are winged and stay airborne without actively attacking the Kongs, though their fiery variants, Flaming Tiki Buzzes, do expel fireballs onto them.
161** ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryTropicalFreeze'': Hootzes are owl-like creatures that are part of the Snowmad tribe, and either remain static in an aerial spot or move in a certain patter (back and forth in a straight line or around a circle). Like Tiki Buzzes, they can come in fiery variants, the Hot Hootzes, who expel fireballs onto the Kongs, and the Blue Hootzes, who hover in place while engulfed in blue fire.
162%%* ''VideoGame/ElephantQuest'': Repulsers, Zippers, and Chasers.
163* ''VideoGame/EternalDaughter'' had many of those, including extremely fast bats and the circle-flying jungle parrots. The jungle also had continuously falling leaves, which had pygmies on them. Cute as it was, a collision with them inflicted a sizeable amount of damage.
164* ''VideoGame/GardenGnomeCarnage'': Sleighs. They float, and some of them drop gift-clad parachuting elves on you, but on the other hand, they can be helpful as they explode like a brick when they hit the ground, likely taking out some elves in the process. In the ''Garden Gnome Carnage'' spin-off ''VideoGame/HyperPrincessPitch'', they return. They shoot projectiles at you, and some of them only fly by, leaving you only short time to kill them, while others stay around and you have to destroy them.
165%%* ''VideoGame/{{Ghoulboy}}'' has giant insects with a skull over their face.
166* ''VideoGame/GunstarHeroes'' has jetpack soldiers that drop bombs in Orange's stage.
167* ''VideoGame/HollowKnight'': Some of the sentries in the City of Tears are winged, allowing them to patrol its airspace and attack the Knight from above; the ones with swords swoop down to swipe at the plaeyer before retreating, while the ones with lances throw their weapons and divebomb you. Most are located in the outdoor areas of the City of Tears, where they can take advantage of the open space to manouver and stay out of the Knight's melee range between attacks.
168* ''VideoGame/JourneyToSilius'' has various robotic bats, hovering Xenomorph-like bots, and the "[=HumpBot=]".
169* ''VideoGame/{{Iji}}'' had the Skysmasher drones in its last level. Not only did their flying pattern make them hard to hit normally, but they also did something no other enemy could -- their Shocksplinter projectile was fired alongside the ground. Thus, the ducking move, normally foolproof against explosive projectiles, was 100% useless.
170* ''VideoGame/MagicalWhipWizardsOfPhantasmalForest'' has bats, ghosts, jack-o'-lanterns, and dangling spiders. In fact, only knights and slimes are earthbound. It's a good thing some levels have infinite midair jump [[PowerUp power-ups]] hidden in them!
171* ''VideoGame/MegaManClassic'' has many MechaMooks that could fly. These include Pipi, a robotic bird from ''VideoGame/MegaMan2'' carrying an egg which it drops. If the egg hits the ground, it breaks into eight or so Copipis, which then fly at Mega Man. Especially annoying are the various Wily Bots, such as Up'n'Downs, Mizzles, and Shururuns that live in BottomlessPits which pop out from them as you jump over, knocking you backwards and into the pit. The series' {{Mascot Mook}}s, Mets, have helicopter-propelled variants of the Met [=DXes=] in Needle Man's Stage Revisited from ''VideoGame/MegaMan3'', Heli Mets, which are encountered in Junk Man's Stage from ''VideoGame/MegaMan7'', and Neo Heli Mets from ''VideoGame/MegaMan10''.
172* ''VideoGame/MercenaryKings'' had several airborne robot enemies. Some are rather weak and more of an annoyance, (Flyer, Ghost) but the Bomber and the Copter Turret are both very powerful.
173* ''VideoGame/MetalSlug'' has the dangerously annoying helicopters and missile aircrafts.
174* ''VideoGame/NinjaSenki'' features one in every level group. The ghosts in sections 1 & 2, Purple Flames (these fly high and drop small flames onto the ground) at sections 3 & 4, demon heads going in circles around you on sections 5 & 6, etc., etc.
175* ''VideoGame/PizzaVsSkeletons'': Introduced in Level 1-6 are little winged skeletons that dive bomb at [[PlayerCharacter the pizza]].
176* There are multiple varieties of these in ''VideoGame/SaltAndSanctuary''.
177* [[WebGame web-based]] ''VideoGame/{{Shadowless}}'' features classical randomly flying bats.
178* ''VideoGame/SmurfRescueInGargamelsCastle'' has hawks and bats that you must avoid, since you cannot destroy them.
179* ''VideoGame/{{Snailiad}}'' has, among others, the Sky Viper, Chirpy, Batty Bat, and Ghost Dandelion.
180* The ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' series has quite a few aerial Badniks, like the [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1 Buzz]] [[VideoGame/SonicGenerations Bom]][[VideoGame/SonicLostWorld bers]] and [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2 Buz]][[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog4 zers.]] They [[TooDumbToLive tend to fly within Sonic's attack range]], though, and most are rather easily dispatched.
181%%* ''VideoGame/SpikesPeak'': The eagles.
182* ''Franchise/SpyroTheDragon'':
183** Copter Gnorcs fly by means of harnesses with large helicopter blades.
184** Gnorc Balloonists float by means of holding on to large balloons. The only way to defeat them is to pop their balloons when they dip down to attack, sending them plunging into the bottomless pits they hover over.
185** Plane Gnorcs fly around on big diesely airplanes.
186** In ''VideoGame/SpyroAHerosTail'', Birdmem are skinny gnorcs who fly with leather wings strapped to their arms and mostly exist as obstacles in certain platforming sections, while Balloon-a-rang Gnorcs float with balloons tied to their backs and must have their boomerangs reflected back at them to pop their balloons and send them falling to their doom.
187%%* ''VideoGame/{{Starbound}}'' has several flying, ranged enemy types.%%Like?
188* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'': The games have several:
189** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros1'' introduces Lakitu (which flies [[FlyingOnACloud on clouds]] out of normal range and drop [[TheSpiny Spinies]] onto the player) and Koopa Paratroopas (flying versions of the usual Koopas; they lose their wings and fall to earth if Mario jumps on them, becoming regular Koopa Troopas).
190** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBrosTheLostLevels'', Bloopers move and behave exactly the same on air as they do underwater (quick ascent, low descent; they only sidestep during the brief moment they move up). The good news is that Mario ''can'' stomp on them on the air.
191** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'', Albatosses slowly fly through a horizontal line (almost always to the left, but the ones appearing at the start of World 6-2 soar to the right), while the Beezos fly faster (to the point that characters can only stand over them for a brief moment). Pidgits use carpets to fly in an oscillating pattern until they aim at the player's character to harm them (in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'', they replace Bullet Bills upon completion of the Special World and can fly just fine without a carpet).
192** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'': Paragoombas are winged versions of the Goombas, another common type of Mook. Yellow ones fly high overhead to avoid Mario's attacks, while dropping Micro-Goombas that stick onto Mario and weigh him down. They also lose their wings when jumped on.
193** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' introduces Parabombs, which are Bob-ombs falling onto the floor with a parachute. Also, in the Forest of Illusion, some enemies such as Galoombas and Bob-ombs themselves that are otherwise ground-based travel encased in floating bubbles.
194** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld2YoshisIsland'' introduces Fly Guys, which fly almost steadily in many levels (though some hold valuable red coins and are sadistic enough to fly away from the screen shortly afterwards, preventing you from getting those coins unless you replay the level from the start). Toadies are also introduced, and they're the ones who will take away Baby Mario if he hovers around the level for too long.
195** ''VideoGame/SuperMario64'' has both the Fly Guys and the debuting Snufit (a ghostly subspecies of the Snifits). Famously, Klepto the Condor flies in some levels and will take away Mario's hat if he's given the chance to.
196** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy'' and ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy2'' have Cluckbooms, chicken-like mooks that drop bombs on Mario or Luigi. The moving sand's currents makes them harder to deal with (even when you bring them down with Star Bits).
197** ''VideoGame/SuperMario3DLand'' and ''VideoGame/SuperMario3DWorld'' has Para-Biddybuds, which typically fly in groups and with a joint pattern, as well as Stingbies, a bee enemy that chases Mario and/or Luigi if they spot them, though they are limited by the heights in their flights. ''3D World'' also introduces Parabones (Dry Bones with wings), which are also present in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioOdyssey''.
198** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioMaker'' and its [[VideoGame/SuperMarioMaker2 sequel]] has Para-''anything''. Any enemy in the game can have wings if you wish so. Including Bowser himself.
199** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioOdyssey'' introduces the Urban Stingbies, which are [[UndergroundMonkey mosquito variants of the usual Stingbies]] found in Metro Kingdom and [[spoiler:a part of Darker Side]]. Unlike their regular relatives, they charge at Mario at the cost of their lives without being held back by a certain height.
200** ''Infinite Adaptive Mario'', a Java remake with self-adjusting difficulty, contains Para-Bullet Bills.
201* ''VideoGame/{{Terraria}}'' has a number of them, including demonic eyes and eaters of souls.
202* In ''VideoGame/{{Underhero}}'', purple ''butterflies'' are an early one. They attack by dive-bombing the player, and are attacked with slingshots.
203* ''VideoGame/{{Wells}}'': One of the enemies [[PlayerCharacter Wells]] faces is little round flying robots.
204[[/folder]]
205
206[[folder:Puzzle Game]]
207* ''VideoGame/TheMagicCircle'' has the Whirlybirds, flying robots who can't be trapped. Once you gain the flight power, you can edit any mook in the game to be airborne.
208[[/folder]]
209
210[[folder:Real Time Strategy]]
211* ''VideoGame/HostileWatersAntaeusRising'' features Enemy Recon Choppers, Apaches and [[spoiler: alien light flyers]]. Note that [[spoiler:the Species was originally meant to be purely land-based; the forms they evolved for aircraft are usually very weakly armored]].
212* ''VideoGame/{{Pikmin}}'':
213** Shearwigs are relatives of the common Sheargrub enemies with wings, allowing them to fly above the Pikmin's reach.
214** Puffy and Withering Blowhogs, unlike the other two Blowhog varieties, are [[LivingGasbag filled with air]] and float above easy fighting range.
215** ''VideoGame/Pikmin3'':
216*** The wasp-like Scornets fly all the time, and Winged Pikmin are needed to fight them effectively.
217*** The Winged Pikmin can be considered a variant of this under the player's control, being by and large vanilla Pikmin but with wings, allowing them to tackle airborne foes and move directly over obstacles such as walls, cliffs and bodies of water.
218* ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII:''
219** Night Elf Archers can learn the Hippogryph Taming skill, which lets them hitch a ride on a hippogryph, combining a fragile ranged unit with a melee flyer to become the main ranged air unit. In the expansion, it's made reversible, which means any flying enemies will now be facing lots of arrows from below and big nasty claws above.
220** Gargoyles are the Undeads main air units, they have weak attacks, but can be a menace in large numbers.
221** The Obsidian Statue is a weak SupportPartyMember (a hovering statue that refills allies health or mana and does laughable damage), but it can become a Destroyer, a very powerful flying monster that has to eat magic to fuel its more destructive attacks and is immune to magic (this one is irreversible, however).
222[[/folder]]
223
224[[folder:Roguelike]]
225* ''VideoGame/TheBindingOfIsaac'': A wide variety of these is present.
226** Many are varieties of a fly, starting from regular red flies that have tiny health and only do contact damage, all the way to fast, tough [[MeaningfulName Boom Flies]] that [[DefeatEqualsExplosion explode on death]]. In between there are the ranged Pooters and the smaller ladybug-like things that also explode on death, but are much slower and weaker than Boom Flies.
227** There are Hofers -- eyeless heads suspended in the air that spit blood and a variety that moves while doing so. Then there are relatively high-level Babies, which shoot blood and [[TeleportSpam constantly teleport]], and Angelic Babies which fire a SpreadShot of three. [[spoiler: The Womb]] has Leeches, which charge forward through the air at ridiculously high speeds if you’re in their path, with the upgraded [[DefeatEqualsExplosion Explosive Leeches]] and Angelic Leeches (also Explosive, but are protected by an invincible fly) encountered at [[spoiler: Satan’s level and Cathedral, respectively]]
228* ''VideoGame/{{Gloom}}'' has the flying headcrab-like things which slowly fire projectiles. You can't shoot upwards either, you'll either have to let them fly off on their own (Unholy Parish), or wait until they float down to striking distance (their homegrounds of Lightless Forest, where they are spawned from nests).
229* ''VideoGame/{{hets}}'' has three main varieties, and all are quite dangerous. The large flies will speed up as soon as they see you, and when chasing you, they'll follow the shortest possible distance while also bobbing up and down, to make targeting difficult. The mosquito-like enemies will freeze for a second when they see you, but then they'll immediately fly in a straight line to the place you were standing at that time, not stopping until they've hit you or some obstacle. Lastly, there are the skulls that'll float lazily until they notice you, but then will regularly fire projectiles just like your own.
230* ''VideoGame/{{NetHack}}'' features many flying creatures. Essentially everything represented by [[OurAngelsAreDifferent A]], [[GoddamnedBats B]], [[OurDragonsAreDifferent D]], [[OurGhostsAreDifferent W]] or v (vortex) is one. All of these obviously ignore pits, beartraps, landmines and such, and easily travel over water. All of them also have good-to-great AC -- Dragons and Angels because of their scales and armour, the rest because flying lets them dodge attacks easier. There are also several special cases...
231** Couatl are essentially flying feathered angelic snakes. Lawful players will practically always be friendly with them, and so have little to worry about. Neutrals and chaotics are also likely to outmatch them by the time you first encounter one, and be immune to their poisonous bite. However, everything changes if you happen to be near water -- couatl will then wrap itself around you, and pull you under, which is a guaranteed insta-kill unless you manage to free yourself in the one turn between couatl wrapping itself against your body, and couatl pulling you under (and if you are heavily burdened with stuff or otherwise slow, you won't get that turn either). The only way to definitely avoid that fate near water is to either wear a ring of magical breathing (makes drowning pointless, but all your stuff still gets soaked and screwed up as a result), or to wear an oilskin cloak, which will cause couatl and other entangling creatures, like kraken, to harmlessly slip off.
232** Killer bees (use letter "a", mainly used for the similarly dangerous giant ant varieties). Frequently encountered in swarms of 10+. Their tiny size gives them AC of 0 -- i.e. landing a damaging blow on them is as difficult as on someone fully encased in the basic metal armor. Worst of all, though, is their poison -- up until your character gets poison resistance, it frequently amounts to an insta-kill. If you don't have it, the best thing to do about them is to immediately engrave the Elbereth ward, and attack at range until they finally die or at least go away long enough for you to retreat to another level/behind some door, all while desperately reapplying the ward to ensure it doesn't fade while you are surrounded. This is comparatively easy for Rangers and Wizards, with their powerful ranged attacks/spells, but hell for classes like Archeologist, whose best ranged option is to literally throw anything you have in your inventory at them.
233** Mind flayers and master mind flayers (h, meaning humanoid, usually used for dwarves). Being humanoid, they can open doors, wear armor and wield weapons (including ranged ones, like bows, or magical ones, like staffs) in addition to their flying. They are telepathic, and they will ''lock on'' to telepathic players, dealing damage to them at range, even if they are behind several walls in a different room. None of that is as scary as their titular ability to suck your brains out. Essentially, every melee attack of theirs has a chance to reduce your intelligence, and if it falls below 3, your last thoughts will fade away. If you kill the mind flayer with only some intelligence loss, it can be restored relatively easily with potions or a unicorn horn: however, that wouldn't heal your amnesia, forcing you to re-learn what nearly every item in your inventory does, unless you've kept notes earlier. Helmets block ''some'' of these attacks, but mind flayers get three such attacks a turn, so the helmets are not enough, even if greased (flayers' tentacles will definitely slip off, up until they manage to wear off the grease). Ranged combat is better. [[RetGone Genociding them with a scroll is better still]].
234* The legendary bats of ''VideoGame/{{Spelunky}}'', which have a great detection range, but poor pathfinding and are thankfully [[OneHitPointWonder one-hitpoint wonders]]. The Jungle levels occasionally have Vampires that can turn into Bat-form to keep things fresh. Then, the Ice Cave levels have [[DemonicSpiders laser-firing UFOs]]. These also die in one hit, but their shots can irreparably destroy the platforms. Woe betide you if they manage to hit the shrine to Kali...
235** The paid Spelunky remake also has the Jungle Wasps, which are tougher and more dangerous than bats.
236 [[/folder]]
237
238[[folder:Role-Playing Games]]
239* ''VideoGame/ArenaXlsm'', made in Microsoft Excel, had Bees, Wasps, Hornets, Bats, Vultures, Gargoyles and more. All of these are Immune to Ranged Attacks, apparently due to being able to dodge them mid-flight. This is a considerable problem, since it forces you to wait for them to come to you, even as some of them may still be able [[MyRulesAreNotYourRules to shoot you at the same time as moving towards you]]. Thankfully, their immunity goes away if you manage to get them exhausted. (Though Hard Mode lets them keep their immunity).
240* ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'':
241** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'' has Cliff Racers, a ''prime'' example of GoddamnedBats. They appear all over the game's island setting, make an irritating sound, do little damage yet can make you flinch when they hit you, drop crappy loot, often carry diseases, come in [[ZergRush flocks of three to ten]], and their [[HitboxDissonance hit detection]] leaves a lot to be desired. They are [[TheScrappy so reviled]] that Bethesda took notice and, in later games, it is mentioned that one of ''Morrowind''[='s=] {{Ensemble Darkhorse}}s [[TakeThatScrappy drove their entire species to extinction]].
242** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'' has [[OurDragonsAreDifferent Dragons]]. They can appear randomly at any time to attack you as a BossInMookClothing. They spend most of the battle flying until you've chipped away about 2/3 of their health, which forces them to land. Thankfully, you learn a Shout ("Dragonrend") that acts like an AntiAir BrownNote to them, forcing them to land. However, it's a [[EleventhHourSuperpower late-game Shout]] you can only learn about 3/4 of the way through the main quest. Tough luck to all you melee-only Dovahkiin out there!
243* ''VideoGame/Fallout3'' has the Bloatflies, which attack by spitting their larvae at truly unearthly speeds, and Mr. Handy -- Mr. Gutsy robots, as well as Eyebots used by the Enclave.
244* ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' adds the similar, but ''[[DemonicSpiders much]]'' tougher Cazadors.
245* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
246** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' has some enemies with the flying status, which means that you can't use melee attacks against them unless they are guns or bows/crossbows. Alternatively, one can just use magic on them without having to open up the inventory all the time.
247** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' also has enemies with the "flying" status which cannot be damaged by melee attacks. There are also bat enemies which had a 1/8 (later ones had 1/4) chance of completely avoiding a physical attack.
248** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' has a wide variety of flying enemies including [[OurWyvernsAreDifferent Wyverns]], winged Cie'th, and airborne soldiers. They can be damaged by melee attacks, but tend to be more mobile than other enemies and are immune to being launched when staggered.
249* ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi'': Flying enemies are common, and cannot be hit with hammers and other low-hitting moves; the GoombaStomp is needed instead.
250** ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiBowsersInsideStory'': Bowser has it pretty rough against the (very few) airborne enemies he fights -- he is unable to attack them via any of his normal attacks, as his punches can't reach high enough and his fire breath can't be aimed upwards, and needs to inhale them so that the Bros. can deal with them.
251** ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiDreamTeam'' adds mooks (and bosses) that change from being airborne mooks to land-based ones mid battle (and vice versa), with Flibbees going between being right way up and on the floor and upside down and in mid air. There's also Robo Drilldigger, a giant boss who has both land and sky forms (and whom is immune to the jump or hammer depending on which one is in use) and the boss Pi'illodium, who can thankfully be taken out the air and made vulnerable to ground based attacks if you destroy its wings.
252* ''Franchise/MassEffect'':
253** ''VideoGame/MassEffect1'': Flying Assault Drones and Rocket Drones. Their flying makes them immune to most biotic attacks, and they have some of the strongest [[DeflectorShields shielding]] in the game and very tough weapons to boot. They land eventually, though, and can be lured to your side with a high enough Hacking skill.
254** ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' nerfs the Rocket and Assault Drones, but allows enemy Engineers to create small drones of their own. These have very low health, but are fast and usually attempt to flank you and dislodge you from cover using their melee electric shock attack. Luckily, engineers can create their own.
255** ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'' has the Harvesters. Made from a wild, non-sentient specie, these are very tough, have a powerful cannon attack and spawn more basic husks around them. The multiplayer also has the very fast Geth Bomber drones with difficult-to-dodge attacks.
256* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'':
257** In general, weak Flying-types turn up regularly in early routes and wilderness areas. They cannot be targeted with Ground-type moves, and tend to be pretty speedy on top of that.
258** Pokémon with the Levitate ability to dodge Ground-type attacks largely act the same. The Tynamo family is particularly nasty for this reason; its offensive stats are high enough that it can do more than stall, and its weakness to Ground attacks is annulled by its Levitate ability, effectively leaving it with ''none''. That is, unless Gastro Acid, Entrainment, Gravity, Mummy, or Mold Breaker come out to play.
259* ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'': Hawks stay in the air and swoop to attack, unless knocked down by an attack.
260[[/folder]]
261
262[[folder:Shoot 'Em Ups]]
263* ''VideoGame/HeavyWeapon'' has your tank on the ground, and most of your enemies in the air. There are some ground-based enemies too, which can sometimes be more annoying than the aerial ones.
264* ''VideoGame/JawsRevenge'' had the helicopters, which dropped the ExplosiveBarrels onto your shark. However, it only took three hits at most to bring them down.
265* ''VideoGame/{{Stormwinds}}'' has ''every single enemy'', which are all flying SteamPunk machines of the nation of Demo. Justified in that Demo is attempting to invade from across the ocean. A good number of them tend to be carried by huge balloons as their method of flight, [[AttackItsWeakPoint shooting them there]] will cause them to take massive damage.
266[[/folder]]
267
268[[folder:Simulation games]]
269* ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' has the player swatting entire squadrons of enemy aircraft.
270* ''VideoGame/AirForceDelta'' also throws multiple varieties of hostile planes at you.
271[[/folder]]
272
273[[folder:Survival Horror]]
274* ''Franchise/DeadSpace'':
275** ''VideoGame/DeadSpace1'' has the sorta-flying Infectors, which are weak but fast, and whose main purpose consists of making more Necromorphs from the corpses lying around.
276** The ''VideoGame/DeadSpace2'' DLC ''Severed'' has the actual winged Flyer Necromorphs. Thankfully, they are also the weakest of the bunch.
277** ''VideoGame/DeadSpace3'' has a Necromorph formed from the alien spore plant that is only encountered in Zero-G environment and will shoot you with its spores.
278* ''VideoGame/Kabus22'' has giant flying bat Maduns as an enemy type.
279* ''VideoGame/ObsCure'' and its sequel had the university girls mutated into moth-like flying enemies, which also had a habit of attacking in swarms.
280* The infamous Air Screamers and their Otherworld version, Night Flutters, in ''VideoGame/SilentHill1''. They only appear when it’s dark and foggy and usually aren’t spotted until your siren starts ringing. Avoiding them is difficult because they fly faster than you and are smart enough not to fly straight to your location but will circle you and ''then'' attack. Fighting them is even worse, as they attack out of reach of melee weapons unless it’s too cramped for that (and even then, they can’t be attacked by knife at all), forcing you to waste seven Handgun bullets to bring them down.
281** ''VideoGame/SilentHill3'' had the Pendulum, a whirring machine-like thing that flew like a helicopter with blades of rusted metal (which it eagerly used to cut you up as well, of course.) ''VideoGame/SilentHillHomecoming'' had the airborne insectoid swarms, which would cling to Alex and drain his health over time.
282** Also, ''VideoGame/SilentHill4'' had relatively weak Mothbats, which were notable for weakness to Bug Spray and being capable of distracting the ghost of main antagonist from pursuing you.
283* The Balloons in ''VideoGame/SirYouAreBeingHunted'' won't attack you, but if you get caught in their spotlights they will alert other enemies to your presence.
284* The ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' series has T-Virus infected crows. They're not overly aggressive so provided you keep your distance they'll usually leave you alone, but if you fire a weapon then all bets are off and [[ZergRush you'll be swarmed]]. One of the most well-known puzzles in the series pops up in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil1'' where you must solve a puzzle involving paintings and switches in a hallway where a murder of infected crows are perched on the rafters: get it wrong and it agitates the crows, forcing you to make a mad dash for the entrance before you get pecked to death.
285[[/folder]]
286
287[[folder:Tower Defense]]
288* ''VideoGame/{{Arknights}}'': Drones serve as airborne enemies. The most basic variant can't even attack your operators, but later drones are significantly more dangerous, being equipped with long-range guns (sometimes even ''gatling'' guns), drop bombs, launch magic spells, or buffing every enemy unit in a radius around them, all while still completely bypassing your melee operators.
289* ''[[http://www.kongregate.com/games/HeroInteractive/bubble-tanks-tower-defense Bubble Tanks: Tower Defense]]'' has an odd variation -- in this game, the flying enemies are called "[[{{Intangibility}} Ghost]]" enemies. They pretty much act in the same way you'd expect a flying mook to in a TowerDefense game -- by [[DungeonBypass bypassing your towers]].
290* Two kinds of flying enemies appear in ''VideoGame/DefenseGridTheAwakening'', one of which just has more health than the other. In any case, both of them are very dangerous as they are immune to some towers, and cores stolen by them ''cannot'' be replaced.
291* ''VideoGame/DesktopTowerDefense'' has the appropriately-named "Flying" creep.
292* The ''VideoGame/KingdomRush'' series has quite a number of these, which cannot be blocked by Barracks or directly targeted by Artillery (though SplashDamage will still hurt them). Every wave containing these is demarcated by a different wave marker to alert the player. Downplayed by Gulaemons and Leap Dragons, which are normally grounded enemies but can fly for a short while every now and then.
293* ''VideoGame/MiniRobotWars'' has the Scout Helicopter, Jetpacker, Napalm Airship, Hyper Jet, Ghost and Reaper. The good news is that they do not have much health compared to land-based mooks. During the NewGamePlus, many of the land-based enemy units get a helicopter attachment that allows them to travel in the air at a fast speed.
294* ''VideoGame/PlantsVsZombies''
295** The Balloon Zombie flies over ''all'' your defences and cannot be targeted by most Plants. The AntiAir exceptions are the Cactus and Cattail, which pop their balloons, and the Blover, which [[OneHitKill flat-out blows away]] all of the Balloon Zombies on the screen.
296** [[VideoGame/PlantsVsZombies2ItsAboutTime The sequel]] introduces several- the Seagull Zombie, the Parrot Zombie, the Jetpack and Disco Jetpack zombies, and any zombie carried by the Bug Zombie. Unlike the Balloon zombie, regular plants could thankfully hit them. The Dodo Rider is an interesting case- it starts out as a grounded mook, but when it encounters ice floes or troublesome plants it flies over them until it passes the obstacle.
297%%* ''VideoGame/TowerMadness'': Flying Aliens.
298[[/folder]]
299
300[[folder:Turn Based Strategy/Tactics]]
301* ''VideoGame/AgeOfWonders'' had various flying units for each faction. Usually, they were amongst its most powerful, like the dragons, White And Dark Angels, the cat-wyvern-like thing, the air elemental and more. It helped that they were practically invulnerable to the melee attacks (unless those were the counter-attacks in response to be hit) and practically had to be wailed down with ranged units (that had a habit of missing) or the expensive magic.
302* ''VideoGame/CodeNameSteam'' had Shrikes and Nettlers. The latter often hover high enough to require the player to actively look up with their current character to notice them.
303* ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' throws Pegasus Riders, Wyvern Riders, and, occasionally, flying monsters at the players on a regular basis.
304* ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic'':
305** ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagicIII'' generally had one or two flying units per race. Some, like Citadel Lightning Birds or the Tower Gargoyles, would only cover seven squares or so, while others, like Angels, Pegassi or all dragon types, could fly to any square on the board. The Dungeon faction Harpies deserve a special mention: when upgraded, these had the “Return Back (to a starting point) After Striking” and “Enemy Doesn’t Respond To Blows” trait, which essentially made them into a ranged unit that could attack with impunity and flee if a stronger unit cornered them.
306** ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagicV'' has a smaller selection of races, but tries to give them more variety to compensate. As such, the flying units also gain more unique traits. For instance, Gryphons can fly off the map for one turn to dive down at your chosen spot in the next. If the enemy troops are still there, they receive doubled damage from the attack.
307* ''VideoGame/IntoTheBreach'': Hornet, Moth, and Mosquito Vek, as well as the Psions, hover above the ground, making them immune to drowning and falling into a pit. However, they are still vulnerable to hazards on the ground, such as landmines or acid pools.
308* Creator/NipponIchi strategy-RPG titles feature a variety of flying creatures, including angels, succubi, and assorted monsters.
309* ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWars'' includes a broad selection of flying units, both giant robots and more conventional aircrafts.
310* ''VideoGame/{{XCOM}}'' has Floaters and an assortment of similar aliens in the sequels.
311 [[/folder]]
312
313[[folder:WideOpenSandbox]]
314* ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' has a number of flying mobs. A number of them are harmless or passive (such as parrots and bats), and then there are the less harmless ones. In most cases, bringing a bow and arrows is a good idea:
315** Ghasts are large floating ghost-like jellyfish found only in the Nether and fire exploding fireballs at you. You can use melee to hit their fireballs back to them to kill them.
316** Blazes are also only found in the Nether and are capable of floating above the ground, although they usually stay around ground level. They fire less explosive fireballs at you that can't be deflected.
317** Vexes are ghostlike entities summoned by [[FlunkyBoss Evokers]] that harass you and can pass through walls, but lose health over time.
318** Phantoms are [[TheUndead undead]] [[FlyingSeafoodSpecial manta ray]]-like {{Animalistic Abomination}}s that spawn at night in the overworld in large numbers and swoop at the player -- but they only appear if the player hasn't slept for three days, [[AbstractEater since they're attracted to insomnia]]. Notably, they were picked in a vote for a new mob by fans who felt that the overworld had too few of this trope.
319* ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}'' and [[VideoGame/{{Prototype2}} its sequel]] had their protagonists so powerful that the helicopters, normally reserved for BossBattle|s in games or at least acting as BossInMookClothing, became this trope. After all, both Alex Mercer and James Heller could just jump up to their level and kick them out of the air.
320[[/folder]]
321
322[[folder:Non-video game examples]]
323[[AC:Anima & Manga]]
324* ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaStrikers'' has the Type II Gadget Drones that are specially made for aerial missions. The Type I and Type III Gadgets have also {{Flight}} abilities, but theirs are inferior.
325%%* ''Anime/OccultAcademy'': The moth-like, eye-glowing "tengu".
326%%* ''Manga/YakuzaGirl'' has the flying Yaguruma Clan.
327
328[[AC:ComicBooks]]
329* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: Atomia's Protron mooks have built in jet packs, which makes them more annoying than the usual mook as this was long before later writers gave Diana the ability to fly on her own.
330
331[[AC:FanWorks]]
332* ''Fanfic/HellsisterTrilogy'': ComicBook/{{Darkseid}} deploys legions of bat-winged parademons in order to deter the heroes. Franchise/{{Superman}} and ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} destroy hundreds of parademons in battle, but the aerial demons succeed in slowing the heroes down.
333* ''Fanfic/SonOfTheSannin'': Akatsuki's Zetsu clone army includes a winged variant capable of flying. The Shinobi Allied Forces refer to them as "Flyers". Kurotsuchi prefers to call them "Miserable Sons of Bitches" since their attack forced her to back off on her plans of overseeing the battle from above.
334
335[[AC:Films -- Live-Action]]
336* Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse: ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' (in the BadFuture nightmare) and ''[[Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague Justice League]]'' feature the Parademons, airborne soldier creatures from Apokolips.
337* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
338** ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'': Geonosian soldiers are winged members of their race, who can fly and are armed with shock sticks or sonic blasters.
339** ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'': The jet-propulsor equipped Stormtroopers. To quote Finn, "They can fly now?"
340%%* ''Film/TheWizardOfOz'': The Winged Monkeys.
341
342[[AC:Pinball]]
343* In ''Pinball/AirborneAvenger,'' the villain's {{Mooks}} get around with hang gliders... while the hero uses a one-man flying jet-sled.
344
345[[AC:TabletopGames]]
346* ''TabletopGame/ArkhamHorror'': Blue-coloured monsters can fly, in order to more freely attack investigators. If they fail to find a suitable target, they will move into sky, becoming unreachable, until the next opportunity arises.
347* ''TabletopGame/EpicCardGame'': Champions with the Airborne ability, who can only be blocked by other Airborne cards.
348* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'':
349** Formian winged warriors are a subtype of the common warrior caste capable of aerial movement, and specialize in skirmishing against landbound foes using their agility and ability to [[SpikeShooter shoot their tail spikes]] as a ranged attack from the air.
350** Quadrones are the only winged variant of modrons, and often combine this with their proficiency with bows to serve as aerial ranged support for modron forces.
351* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'': Creatures with the Flying ability are these. They can only be blocked by [[TakesOneToKillOne creatures with Flying]] or creatures with [[AntiAir Reach]].
352* ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'': Xanderghul created winged sinspawn capable of flight, both because he felt that his minions should be able to literally soar over his rivals' and because his domain was highly mountainous.
353* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': The malleability of the more basic Tyranid organisms means that it's fairly easy for the Hive Mind to create airborne variants of them.
354** [[OurGargoylesAreDifferent Gargoyles]] are essentially just Gaunts, the basic foot troops of the swarms, with a pair of wings tacked on. Nightgaunts are a similar variation, but with scything talons instead of the Gargoyles' organic guns.
355** Shrikes are a variant of the common Warriors equipped with membranous wings, intended to serve both as highly mobile shock troops and to oversee other flying organisms who might otherwise become separated from ground-bound synapse creatures.
356** Sky-slashers are a winged variant of Ripper swarms, used for skyborne {{Zerg Rush}}es.
357
358[[AC:Webcomics]]
359* ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'': A major mechanic of Sburb is that all items that a player places into their Kernelsprite before entering the Medium give their traits to the enemies encountered thereafter. After Dave does this with a dead crow, some enemies, chiefly Imps and Basilisks, develop avian wings that allow them to fly.
360
361[[AC:WesternAnimation]]
362* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'': One episode has the Joker activate an army of toys, including a squadron of tiny attack planes that dive-bomb Franchise/{{Batman}}.
363* ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'': Some of the Decepticon Vehicons (also known as Eradicons) have jet forms.
364%%** Then there's the Insecticons.
365[[/folder]]
366

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