A strategic fighter is a fast, well-armed and long-range fighter aircraft, capable of fulfilling roles such as that of an escort fighter protecting bombers, a penetration fighter carrying out offensive sorties of its own far into enemy territory, and of maintaining standing combat air patrols at significant distance from its home base.
Originally conceived of as a heavy fighter, as technologies developed giving lighter and more maneuverable types longer range, the focus of strategic fighter design shifted to include these types.