Editing Down aerial

[[File:MarthDownAerialSSBM.gif|thumb|Animation of {{SSBM|Marth}}'s down aerial in ''Melee''.]]

The '''down aerial''' ({{ja|下空中攻撃|Shita kūchū kōgeki}}, ''Down/lower/under midair attack''; commonly abbreviated as '''Dair''' or '''d-air''', and referred to as '''AttackAirLw''' internally) is an [[aerial attack]] that is performed in midair by pressing the attack button while tilting the [[control stick]] downward. Its official term varies between titles, where it is known as a '''down midair attack''' in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]'', and a '''down air attack''' from ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]'' onward. Many of these moves are [[meteor smash]]es, and typically either are single or multi-hit attacks directly below the character, or are [[stall-then-fall]]s where the character briefly hovers in the air, then rockets downwards.

|[[Bowser Jr.]]||Rotates a drill from the [[Koopa Clown Car]] below himself, hitting multiple times. Cannot meteor smash conventionally. Possesses a landing hitbox.

|[[Byleth]]||Swings downward with Aymr.

|[[Dark Samus]]||Turns upside down and swings her Arm Cannon in an arc starting from the back.

|[[Samus]]||Turns upside down and swings her Arm Cannon in an arc starting from the back.

|[[Sephiroth]]||Performs Hell's Gate, a diving thrust with Masamune.

*The down aerials of [[Banjo]] & [[Kazooie]], [[Bayonetta]], [[Bowser]], [[Corrin]], [[Greninja]], [[Ice Climbers]], [[Kazuya]], [[Min Min]], [[Mr. Game & Watch]], [[Richter]], [[Ridley]], [[Sephiroth]], [[Simon]], [[Sheik]], [[Sonic]], [[Sora]], [[Steve]], [[Toon Link]], and [[Zero Suit Samus]] all function as [[stall-then-fall]]s, except in ''Melee'' (and ''Brawl'' for Bowser).

*The down aerials of [[Mega Man]] and [[Steve]] are the only ones that are [[projectile]]s, and thus can be [[reflect]]ed or [[Pocket]]ed.

**Falco's down aerial is very fast for a spike (coming out on frame 5), and a vital component to his [[pillar]] combos. However, it was nerfed in the [[PAL]] version of the game, as only the clean hit spikes instead of the entire move, making it less effective for [[edgeguarding]] and beating [[crouch cancel]]ing.

*[[Ganondorf]]'s down aerial is the strongest [[meteor smash]] among playable characters in ''Brawl'', as well as one of the strongest meteor smashes and down aerials as a whole in the series, dealing particularly high damage and enough knockback to KO reliably onstage. In ''SSB4'', it is one of the only two meteor smashes that cannot be [[tech]]ed on the ground, due to its high amount of [[freeze frames]].

*[[Marth]]'s down aerial, specifically in ''Melee'', is possibly the most feared with its speed, range, and ability to spike. Its effectiveness has been reduced in the PAL version, and later in ''Brawl'', where it can be [[meteor cancel]]ed, though it still retains a large part of its utility. In ''SSB4'', however, it was severely [[nerf]]ed with reduced range, weaker sourspots, increased startup, meteor smashing only at the middle of the swing, and having a reversed animation (starting from behind Marth rather than in front of him), making it significantly harder to land.

*[[Yoshi]]'s down aerial is the most damaging in all of its appearances, dealing a maximum of 56% in ''Smash 64'', 53% in ''Melee'', 35% in ''Brawl'', 32.2% in ''SSB4'', and 28% in ''Ultimate''. This allows it to easily bring opponents to KO percentages, especially those with large [[hurtbox]]es. In ''Smash 64'', it comes out on frame 4 and it deals enough damage to [[shield]]s to outright break them if all hits connect, making it highly effective. Although it deals the least damage in ''Ultimate'', it connects much more reliably than in previous games to its looping hits using the [[autolink angle]].

**In ''Melee'', it is also a simple way to win the Paper Mario [[trophy]] in [[Home-Run Contest]], as it can easily rack up a lot of damage on the [[Sandbag]] without the need of [[bat drop]]ping.

*{{SSBU|Ivysaur}}'s and {{SSBU|Pyra}}'s down aerials in ''Ultimate'' are both notorious for their large, disjointed hitboxes and their ability to consistently meteor smash opponents, making both of them excellent for edgeguarding.