Army and Air Force aircraft are identified by a unique Serial Number assigned to each. Navy and Marine Corps aircraft are similarly identified by a Bureau Number. The Coast Guard also identifies its aircraft by Serial Number.
The best available source on the Web for information about individual military aircraft is Joe Baugher’s web site. Joe made a point of trying to identify and list all such aircraft individually by their identifying numbers, as well as providing much further information on a lot of aircraft, and made this information available on his site in very clear fashion.
The site is Joe Baugher’s site.
The searchable table for aircraft on our site includes a little information about some aircraft (like a few nicknames and the disposition of some) that is not available on Joe Baugher’s site. However, overall no one is going to come close to the wealth of aircraft information that is on his site.
Another excellent source of information about all but recent years’ aircraft is “U.S. Military Aircraft Designations and Serials, 1909 to 1979” by John M. Andrade. This book includes lots of data about specific aircraft as well as background on the various types and groups.