Pokémon GO: The 10 Best Flying Type Pokemon

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My name is Adam Watkins. I am an English Literature and Media major who absolutely loves video games. Some of my favorites are Super Mario Bros. 3,... Read more

Reviewed by Benjamin Barr

Flying-type Pokémon are some of the best in the business. While they may not be one of the three starter types, most regions in Pokémon have a couple of decent Flying-type Pokémon available early on in the game. It’s no wonder so many fans gravitate towards these (mostly) avian allies, including us!

As a result, we here at High Ground Gaming have put together this list of the best Flying-types available in Pokémon Go.

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Flying-Type Pokémon Overview

Flying-types are pretty average when it comes to offense. They deal super-effective damage to Grass, Fighting, and Bug-types, two of which are common types trainers use competitively.

However, Flying-type moves are not very effective against Electric, Rock, and Steel-type Pokemon.

Unlike the main series of games, Flying-types are NOT immune to Ground-type moves, so keep that in mind when switching them into that Garchomp’s Earthquake!

Staraptor: The Predator Pokémon

Staraptor suffers from the same issue that plagues many Pokémon that were good in the main series games – the lack of abilities. The simplified battle system in Pokémon Go does a lot of Pokémon favors, but for Pokémon like Staraptor, it guts one of their most important traits.

Without Intimidate, Staraptor is left to rely solely on its rather high attack and stamina stats, and those are just enough to keep it in the top 10 of our list. Luckily, its moves are also pretty impressive, granting access to Brave Bird, Close Combat, and Over Heat. You really can’t go wrong picking any of these moves.

Something to note is that the Normal-type doesn’t really offer much to Flying-type Pokémon. It only provides resistance against Ghost types, and this typing isn’t as common as the Fighting-type resistance you end up losing.

Fearow: The Beak Pokémon

It feels like Fearow never really gets the love it deserves. Always living in the shadow of the more popular Generation One bird Pidgeot. Thankfully, the Pokémon Go balance team didn’t forget about Fearow and actually gave it some pretty great stats and moves.

Its highest stat is still its attack, but its stamina isn’t very far behind. When it comes to charge moves, Sky Attack and Drill Run are your two best options. Drill Run is great for dealing with Electric, Rock, and Steel-types, all of which can be a problem for Flying types.

Moltres: The Flame Pokémon

You may be surprised to see one of the legendary birds this low on the list, but don’t get us wrong. It is a powerful Pokémon, but it isn’t a very good choice if you’re looking specifically for a Flying-type attacker. This is because, outside of its fast moves, Moltres doesn’t naturally learn any Flying-type charge moves.

Its best natural options are Fire Blast and Ancient Power. Ancient Power for type coverage and the potential stat increase. Moltres can learn Sky Attack from an Elite TM, so if you have one in your bag, its ranking increases a bit.

Even with this lack of Flying moves, you really can’t go wrong with a Fire-type legendary on your team, especially when you consider the numerous resistances this typing has.

Honchkrow: The Big Boss Pokémon

In the main series of games, Honchkrow is often ignored in favor of its pre-evolution Murkrow due to Murkrow’s Prankster ability. Since Pokémon Go removes abilities, Honchkrow finally gets a chance to shine. This Flying-type Pokémon is actually packing a massive attack stat for a two-stage evolution.

Its two charge moves of choice are Brave Bird and Dark Pulse. Brave Bird will lower your defense stat faster when using it, so be careful. If you don’t like that downside, Sky Attack is a great Flying-type alternative. Psychic is also an option, but it doesn’t get STAB nor does it cover any of Honchkrow’s major weaknesses.

Zapdos: The Electric Pokémon

A classic powerhouse Pokémon, Zapdos needs no introduction. With its monstrous attack and stamina stats, it’s no wonder it’s called a legendary bird.

Zapdos’s typing also contributes to its popularity and widespread use. Removing the Flying-type’s major weakness to Electric moves is huge and makes Zapdos a formidable defensive Pokémon as well.

Its charge moves of choice are the classic Thunderbolt and Drill Peck. Ancient Power is also a great option for that potential stat boost and coverage against Ice-types.

Salamence: The Dragon Pokémon (Mega)

Much like Moltres, Salamence would be much higher on the list if it wasn’t for its lack of Flying-type moves. Even with that in mind, Mega Salamence’s stats are just too crazy to ignore. Seriously, this thing has next to no weak stats, and its usual type weaknesses hardly matter when you deal this much damage.

Salamence’s best charge moves usually consist of Draco Meteor, along with either Hydro Pump to handle Rock-types or Fire Blast to deal with Ice-types. That being said, we recommend Fire Blast since Ice is a double weakness for Salamence.

Dragonite: (Also) The Dragon Pokémon

One could argue that even if Salamence were capable of learning a Flying-type move, Dragonite would still be the better choice for Flying/Dragon. While Dragonite’s stats may not be as high as Mega Salamence’s, they come pretty close. Moreover, Dragonite doesn’t require mega evolution to achieve those stats, letting you save your mega evolution for a different Pokémon.

Dragonite can also learn Superpower as one of its charge moves. This Fighting-type move covers both Ice and Rock-types. Dragonite can also learn Outrage and Hurricane naturally, giving it access to both STAB moves if it needs them.

Tornadus: The Cyclone Pokémon

Tornadus was a monster back in Generation V, and has returned in Pokémon Go with the same energy. Its attack and stamina stats are its highest, and it can make great use of them.

You might be surprised to find that Tornadus is our first pure Flying-type on this list. Honestly, pure Flying is actually a really solid typing, despite how rare it is. Most Flying-types also tend to have the Normal-type, which helps them out against Ghost-types, but that’s about it.

Tornadus’s mono typing actually helps when it comes to picking fast and charge moves since we only have to worry about getting one STAB bonus. Its two fast moves are Air Slash and Bite. In all honesty, you should pretty much never be using Bite in battle unless your opponent resists Flying-type moves.

Even then, you might still be better off using Air Slash over Bite, as Bite deals really low damage and generates only a small amount of energy. It can be used very often, but the amount of damage done and energy gained is less that what you’d gain from spamming Air Slash.

Tornadus’s charge moves are significantly better; Hurricane and Grass Knot are your go-to choices. Hurricane for big damage with a high energy cost, and Grass Knot to help deal with any Rock-types you may come across.

Dark Pulse and Hyper Beam are also great picks. Dark Pulse gives you additional coverage against Psychic-types, and Hyper Beam will hit a lot of things really hard for neutral damage.

Lugia: The Diving Pokémon

Despite having five weaknesses, Lugia is considered to be a really strong defensive Pokémon. Its defense and stamina are its two highest stats, followed closely behind by its attack stat. Since Lugia’s defense stat is much higher than most Pokémons’ attack stats (even at Max CP), it can even tank super-effective moves with little issue.

Additionally, Lugia is no slouch when it comes to offense. It has access to two fast moves: Dragon Tail, and Extrasensory. Both of these moves deal solid damage, with Extrasensory being used to generate energy and Dragon Tail being used mostly for damage.

Lugia’s recommended charge moves include Sky Attack due to its relatively low energy requirement and decent damage, as well as Hydro Pump for its high non-STAB damage and type coverage against Rock-types. Future Sight is your third option if you want to run another STAB move, but it lacks the type coverage of Hydro Pump.

Rayquaza: The Sky High Pokémon

Rayquaza takes our spot for the number one Flying-type in Pokémon Go, and honestly, it isn’t remotely a competition.

Base form Rayquaza has a Max CP higher than some Pokémon’s mega evolutions. Its mega form’s stats are absolutely ridiculous, even for a legendary. Oh, it’s also a Dragon-type, so it has all the resistances associated with that powerful type. Its weaknesses are fairly easy to avoid/play around, and the strengths the Dragon-type brings greatly outweigh those weaknesses.

Did we mention its really powerful moves? Both of its fast moves deal great damage and generate decent energy. It also has three great charge moves to pick from: Outrage, Dragon Ascent, and Ancient Power.

You can run Outrage for big damage with no drawbacks, or Dragon Ascent for even more damage at the cost of defense stages. Ancient Power is a must-run due to its relatively low energy cost, type coverage against Ice-types (which are Rayquaza’s biggest weakness), and the 10% chance to raise the user’s attack and defense by a stage.

Under the right circumstances, Rayquaza can absolutely sweep enemy teams by itself.

Join the High Ground

That wraps up our list of the best Flying-types in Pokémon Go. Keep in mind that the placement of Pokémon on this list is subject to change based on updates to Pokémon Go.

What are your picks for best/favorite Flying-types? Are you looking for more Pokémon guides? Consider signing up for our newsletter today and join the High Ground!

Happy gaming!