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UEF Air
Tech 1
Air Scout: Hummingbird
The Air Scout is one of the most of useful units available to you. It allows you to quickly and easily see a large portion of the terrain below, including enemy units and buildings regardless if they are under a stealth field generator or not. Built a radar? Don't know what those gray dots are? Use an air scout to pass over these areas to find out what your enemy is really up to.
One tactic I commonly see players use is to set aside one air factory that just continually produces scouts, which has a rally point that passes over the enemy base. In addition to be incredibly distracting, this tactic allows you to constantly see what your opponent is building, and be ready when your opponent decides to attack. Building scouts is quick and efficient, costing -1 mass and only -40 power.
Interceptor: Cyclone
The Interceptor is another popular air unit. With a cost of only -1 mass and -60 power, it is simple to churn them out in large numbers, providing an effective, mobile air defense. Interceptors are good for taking out any air unit - bombers, air transports, scouts, and gunships. Many players usually make dozens of interceptors as a large number of them still provides a decent air defense even at T3. The Interceptor is the most useful unit in defending against the Aeon Mercy.
Attack Bomber: Scorcher
The UEF Attack Bomber uses a napalm style bomb that damages its target over time. This unit is rarely used in multiplayer games, and should be avoided. However, I have seen it have some practical uses in early mass extractor harassment and mass fabricator farm destruction. Because the Scorcher is somewhat inaccurate, it is also useful in taking out enemy units in formation.
Light Air Transport: C-6 Courier
The Light Air Transport has two practical uses. The first is to drop engineers in appropriate locations to create additional outposts. The light air transport may not carry your ACU. The other use to create what the community has dubbed a ghetto gunship.
In order to create a ghetto gunship, create up to six light assault bots and load them into the transport. Then, use the transport to ferry these units around, patrolling near enemy structures. The bots inside the transport will shoot as if they were on the ground. This tactic is particularly useful if your enemy has no T1 interceptors. Ghetto gunships can withstand a beating from a small number of T1 mobile anti-air, but die relatively quickly to interceptors. When attacking a target, make sure to use the patrol command since it will lower itself to the ground if it stops moving. It's good practice to have at least 3 ghetto gunships when trying to kill an enemy ACU.
Tech 2
Torpedo Bomber: Stork
The Torpedo Bomber is used to take out enemy naval units. Much like the other bombers, it is slow and dies quickly to anti-aircraft fire from Cruisers and Interceptors. In fact, torpedo bombers are also easily killed by standard AA guns from destroyers, frigates, and attack boats. If the enemy has taken the sea with a superior number of submarines, using torpedo bombers is one way to fight back.
Bomber: Janus
The Janus T2 Bomber is a stronger version of the T1 bomber. It uses the same napalm style bombs to blanket a certain area with fiery, and somewhat laggy, death. The range of a T2 bomber much larger than a T1 bomber. It out-ranges structures such as T2 anti-air flak, allowing it to drop its payload before it can be destroyed. T2 bombers are best classified as one-time use units since it dies easily to interceptors or any other AA. In general, T2 bombers are not commonly used.
Gunship: Stinger
The Stinger gunship is the basic gunship for the UEF. It uses a fast-firing machine gun to do quick and heavy damage. However, since the bullets do not lead the target, the gunship is used best for stationary targets. These gunships should rarely be used to kill units even though their damage to them is fairly high. This is because if the unit is moved erratically, the gunship will never, ever hit it. The same is true for an enemy ACU. If the ACU walks in circles, the T2 gunship will have problems hitting it.
Air Transport: C14 Star Lifter
The UEF T2 air transport is different from the other factions' air transports in that it can carry more units. For example, the Cybran and Aeon transports can carry only 2 siege bots/sCUs at a time while the UEF transport can carry 3 siege bots/sCUs. This is advantageous since you can carry more units using less transports. In addition, the T2 transport has anti-aircraft guns as well as a gun that shoots at targets on the ground. The T2 Transport can also transport your ACU, but be cautious since if killed mid-flight, the ACU will die along with the transport.
Tech 3
Spy Plane: SR90 Blackbird
Spy planes are the next step up from t1 scouts. Although rarely used since multiple T1 scouts are cheaper and can do the job better, the spy plane is fast and can see much of the enemy base before it is shot down by anti-aircraft fire.
Air Superiority Fighter: Wasp
The Air Superiority Fighter is the next step up from the T1 interceptor. It is quick and does a significant amount of damage to enemy aircraft. Air Superiority Fighters can take on a squadron of T1 interceptors that is much larger in numbers. They are the also helpful in defending against flying experimental units such as the Aeon CZAR and the Cybran Soul Ripper.
Strategic Bomber: Ambassador
The Strategic Bomber is used to do massive damage to a single target. Since the bombs home in on the target, it is irrelevant whether the unit is stationary or not. Good targets for the strategic bomber include any land experimental, sCUs, and, of course, the enemy ACU. Strategic bombers are most effective against Cybran sCUs with the repair upgrade. It takes one strategic bomb to temporarily disable a T3 shield. It takes 2 strategic bombs to kill a Cybran or Aeon ACU and 3 strategic bombs to kill a UEF ACU.
Heavy Gunship: Broadsword
The Broadsword, before the Mercy came along, was one of the most feared air units in the game. In addition to being incredibly durable, the broadsword used a heavy plasma cannon that obliterated land units quickly, from experimentals to ACUs. Broadswords are most effective in large groups. It is important to scout and be aware that your opponent is making broadswords. If your enemy charges your ACU with broadswords and you don't know about it, it's already too late. Experimentals die quickly to a group of T3 Broadswords. One way to avoid getting ACU sniped by broadswords is to hide the ACU underwater. If water isn't available or you don't want to get wet, build a ton of T2 anti-air flak cannons interspersed with some T3 SAM Launchers and T3 air superiority fighters. If you're Cybran, T2 Renegade gunships are also effective at taking out groups of Broadswords.