The aviation electro-optical reconnaissance has the advantages of strong concealment, good visibility and high resolution, and has always been an important means of military reconnaissance in various countries. According to the military mission requirements, the aviation electro-optical system could be classified into four categories: electro-optical targeting system, intelligence and reconnaissance surveillance system, infrared searching and tracking system and electro-optical missile warning and countermeasures system. The typical products were listed, and the characteristics and technical approaches were analyzed. The current status and development trend of domestic and foreign aviation electro-optical reconnaissance technology and equipment was analyzed in terms of optical implementation, stabilized platform evolution, line of sight stabilization, situation awareness, lightweight, multi-task coordination and open systems architecture (OSA).