Forward aerial

Captain Falcon's forward aerial attack: the Knee Smash.

The forward aerial (abbreviated as "fair", "FAir", or "AFA", referred in the Brawl manual as "Front air") is an aerial attack that is performed in midair by pressing the attack button and tilting the control stick/d-pad in the direction the character is facing. Its official term varies between titles, where it is known as a "Front midair attack" in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and a "Front air attack" in Brawl.

List of forward aerials in Super Smash Bros.

Character	Description	Damage
Pikachu	Thrusts its head forward, doing electric damage. Would be very useful combo move if it was difficult to DI out of drills. Combos into up smash and all other aerial attacks.	21% if all hits connect.
Yoshi	Thrusts its head downwards. A useful edgeguarding move and both a combo starter and a combo ender. Combos into his down special move on the ground. It can meteor smash an opponent.	18%
Samus	Bursts out fire out of her arm gun. A useful combo move. It has high damage and is good at breaking down shields. Combos into down aerial.	20% if all hits connect.
Donkey Kong	Punches downwards. A good spike move for edgeguarding. Combos into giant punch and into another forward aerial at middle to high percentages. Most known for its ability to be used vs. shields into a dash grab or down special.	16%
Link	Swings his sword in front of him. Link's strongest aerial in terms of knockback. His main combo ender outside of up special move and forward smash.	20% if both hits connect.
Luigi	Luigi kicks forward while spinning. Good edgeguarding tool. Good range compared to Luigi's other aerials. Combos into the Hyrule tent into an up special.	16%
Mario	It is similar to Luigi's move. It is good versus certain characters like Jigglypuff. It has good range.	16%
Kirby	Does a drill kick in front of him. A very useful combo move. Down aerial→up tilt→short hop→forward aerial→forward smash is one of Kirby's staple combos.	20% if all hits connect.
Jigglypuff	Kicks in front of itself. Good range but low priority. Can "wall of pain" similar to Melee but to less of an extent. Combos into a Rest.	8-13%
Fox	Does a drill kick in front of him. Another good aerial move of Fox's Combos into up smash and virtually all of his aerials. Good approaching and baiting tactics.	12%
Captain Falcon	Does two kicks. Will become Falcon's neutral aerial in future Smash Bros. iterations. First hit combos into up smash. 2nd hit has enough shield stun to forward throw out of it.	22% if both hits connect.
Ness	Throws his hands out forcefully, knocking the opponent backwards. Similar to his dash attack.	12%

List of forward aerials in Super Smash Bros. Melee

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Character	Description	Damage
Mario	Punches downwards. Meteor smashes.	15%
Luigi	A quick karate chop. High horizontal knockback and is one of his primary KO'ing aerial attacks.	12%
Dr. Mario	Similar to Mario. Good for KOing.	17% sweetspotted, 16% sourspotted.
Peach	Slaps forward with her crown.	8-15%
Bowser	Claws forwards. Good for edgeguarding.	9-14%
Donkey Kong	Clutches his hands together and punches down. Meteor smashes at the end of the move.	16%
Yoshi	Swings head downwards while flipping. Meteor smashes powerfully.	17%
Link	Horizontally spins twice while slashing with his sword.	13% first hit, 7% second hit.
Young Link	Similar to Link.	12% first hit,
Zelda	The "Lightning Kick". Zelda kicks forward. Powerful if sweetspotted.
Sheik	Does a quick karate chop. Semi-spikes.	13%
Ganondorf	Nicknamed the "Skull Crusher." Punches downwards. Great KO move.	17%
Samus	Shoots with her cannon in an arc in front of herself.	23% if all hits connect.
Ice Climbers	Swings their hammer down. Meteor smashes if timed well.	10% both, up to 20%.
Kirby	Kicks forward three times.	16% if all hits connect.
Fox	Kicks forward five times.	17% if all hits connect.
Falco	Similar to Fox. Five kicks in front.	27% if all hits connect.
Captain Falcon	The Knee Smash. Very powerful when sweetspotted.	18% when sweetspotted, 5-6% when sourspotted.
Pikachu	Twirls forward while emitting sparks.
Pichu	Similar to Pikachu. Spins forward emitting sparks.	7% damage if all hits connect. Pichu will do 4% damage to itself when using this move.
Mewtwo	Slashes forwards with its claw infused with darkness.	14%
Jigglypuff	Kicks forward with its legs.	12%
Marth	Slashes forwards.
Roy	Similar to Marth.	8%
Ness	Shoots multiple PSI shots out of his hands.	15% if all hits connect.
Mr. Game & Watch	Swings a box forwards.	16% first few frames, 6% later frames.

List of forward aerials in Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Character name	Description	Damage
Mario	Arcs his arm downward as his fist enlarges. Can be a meteor smash if the opponent is near to Mario.	13%
Peach	Slaps her crown forward. Often considered her best KO move.	15%
Bowser	Slashes forwards. It looks like his Flying Slam (or Koopa Klaw).	13% on his hand, 12% on arm, 11% on shoulder.
Donkey Kong	Swings both hands down, clasped together. A very powerful but slow move that can meteor smash.	16%
Diddy Kong	Kicks out both legs and spins around. Similar to Mario's back aerial.	14% clean, 11% late.
Yoshi	Swings his head downward. Can meteor smash.	16% body, 15% head.
Wario	Kicks forward. Has below average knockback, but great priority and lasts a very long time, good for wall of pain.	7%
Link	Swings sword forward and spins around, then swings it again. Its second hit is more powerful, but the first hit only comboes into the second hit at low percentages.	9% Hit 1, 12% Hit 2, up to 21%.
Zelda	Lightning Kick. Kicks forward with a powerful sweet spot on her foot.	20% if sweetspotted, 4% if sourspotted.
Sheik	Karate chops forward. Similar in power and knockback to Luigi's karate chop but with less range.	9%
Ganondorf	Punches his fist downward, similar to Mario's forward aerial. Nicknamed the "Skull Crusher." Stronger and higher in knockback but does not spike and has a large landing lag. Also ties with Bowser's down aerial as the aerial attack with the longest duration.	17% if sweetspotted, 15% if sourspotted.
Toon Link	Swings sword upward. Similar in animation to his back aerial, but a bit slower, though it is a much better finisher with high priority and knockback.	13%
Samus	Creates a few small blasts with her arm cannon, slowly moving them downward. Has no landing lag.	3-4% per hit, 18% if all hits connect.
Zero Suit Samus	Two very fast kicks. The first kick is weaker but often cannot combo into the second hit.	6% first kick, 11% second kick, for up to 17%.
Pit	Stabs both swords forward. Has a bit of start-up lag.	14%
Ice Climbers	Swing hammers downward. Secondary climber's hammer can meteor smash.	12% leader, 12% partner if sweetspotted, 7% partner if sourspotted.
R.O.B.	Pushes its hands forward in midair. Good for wall of pain.	10% if clean hit.
Kirby	Three fast foot slices forward. When combined with a jump this gives slight horizontal recovery.	12%if all hits connect.
Meta Knight	Three very fast sword slashes. The first two hits can be ground-canceled, and from this, Meta Knight can lead in to almost any move.	10% if all hits connect.
King Dedede	Swings his hammer upwards. Reliably KOs under 150%.	15% damage.
Olimar	Swings a Pikmin in front of him.	Red Pikmin: 15%, Blue: 13%, Yellow: 12%, White: 5%, Purple: 14%.
Fox	Five fast kicks; gives a slight hovering effect.	23% if all hits connect.
Falco	Barrel rolls with his body horizontal, hitting five times with his head/beak. Has high landing lag.	11% if all five hits connect.
Wolf	Slashes forward. Has upward knockback and is one of his KO moves.	11%
Captain Falcon	Knee Smash. Very powerful when sweet spotted, which is difficult.	19% if sweetpotted, 3% if sourspotted.
Pikachu	Spins forward surrounded by electricity. Multiple hits available. Similar to Sonic and Falco's forward aerials.	11% damage if all hits connect.
Squirtle	Sticks feet forward. Similar to Mario's back aerial.	12% clean, 6% late.
Ivysaur	Whips forward with vines. Vertical knockback.	12%
Charizard	Covers himself with his wings and breaths fire outwards with good horizontal knockback and range, making it good for the wall of pain. Oddly, if the opponent is far enough away from Charizard, they will not take any knockback or hitstun from this attack - just damage.	10% if all hits connect.
Lucario	Kicks forward; aura appears at the end of the foot. Inflicts little damage but can combo. It can be used twice in one short hop.	4% weakest, 7% strongest.
Jigglypuff	Kicks forward with both feet. Can be used for wall of pain techniques.	12%
Marth	Swings sword downward. Can fit two in one short hop.	13% tipped, 10% untipped.
Ike	Swings sword downward. Has great range, but has long start up lag like most of his moves.	13%
Ness	Creates small bubbles of PSI energy for multiple hits. Good for combos.	11% damage if all hits connect.
Lucas	Kicks forward with PSI energy at the end of his foot.	12% sweetspotted, 10% sourspotted, 8% late.
Mr. Game & Watch	Swings a box forward. Powerful if hits when it comes out, but has high landing lag. If hit after it comes out, it deals a weak hit.	16% clean, 6% late.
Snake	Brings his leg upward, then ax-kicks. Slight upward boost, the foot spikes very powerully, the leg sends the opponent upwards with slight horizontal knockback as well. Strongest forward aerial meteor smash in Brawl.	15%
Sonic	Spins around headfirst very quickly. Has high landing lag. Similar to Falco's or Pikachu's forward aerials.	14% if all hits connect.

Notable forward aerials

• In Melee and Brawl, Captain Falcon's forward aerial is the Knee Smash and is a great KO move.

• Ganondorf's forward aerial has been nicknamed the Skull Crusher and is also a great KO move, though not as powerful as Captain Falcon's.

• Snake's forward aerial is the most powerful forward aerial meteor smash in Brawl.
• Zelda's forward aerial is known as the Lightning Kick, and is a powerful finisher at high percents when sweetspotted.
• Marth's aerial is considered one of the best in its respective games, due to its fast startup and ending lag, good range, its edgeguarding capabilities, and versatility.
• In Brawl, Falco's forward aerial is often considered the worst in the game, due to its poor range, high ending lag, and inferiority to similar attacks, such as Pikachu's and Sonic's.
• Jigglypuff's forward aerial is useful in performing the wall of pain, especially in Melee.
• Donkey Kong's forward aerial in all three games looks almost identical to his midair attack in Donkey Kong 64.