| |
December 16th, 2006
| Post 1 |
| Milforum's Postmaster | Post; F-35 Lightning II Takes Maiden FlightDallas Morning News December 16, 2006 Joint Strike Fighter test was a success, Lockheed says By Victor Godinez, The Dallas Morning News The F-35 Lightning II – the Joint Strike Fighter – successfully completed its first test flight in Fort Worth on Friday afternoon, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. said. The jet flew for about 40 minutes with its landing gear down the entire time, reaching a speed of 225 knots (about 260 miles per hour) and an altitude of 15,000 feet. Lockheed had hoped to briefly raise and lower the gear during the flight, but a minor problem with one sensor led test pilot Jon Beesley to land the plane before he could test the gear. "The primary objective of a first flight is to take off, make sure the systems work, and then come back safely," Mr. Beesley said after the flight. "We did those, and that's really the majority of the mission right there." The F-35 program executive officer, Brig. Gen. C.R. Davis, said that Lockheed will soon have about one test flight per week. "There were very few surprises on this flight, and that's good," he said. The roughly $275 billion contract to build more than 2,400 planes for the Air Force, Marines and Navy is the largest defense project in U.S. history. More than 700 additional F-35s are expected to be ordered by other countries. Lockheed has estimated that it could eventually sell as many as 4,500 of the jets. The Lightning II is designed to replace several older, specialized aircraft, including the F-16, F/A-18 and A-10. Shares of parent company Lockheed Martin Corp. lost 21 cents to close at $90.04.
__________________ |
|
|
December 16th, 2006
| Post 2 |
| Tribuni Angusticlavii | Good luck replacing the A-10.
__________________ F.O. Seaman CAP/USAFAUX DoA/DHS Administration Officer Golden Armor Composite Squadron, 15077 Fort Knox, Kentucky 40121  |
|
|
|
December 16th, 2006
| Post 3 |
| Optio  | Same goes for it replacing the Viper F-16
__________________ Learn from the mistakes of the past. |
|
|
|
December 16th, 2006
| Post 4 |
| Chief Engineer  | The A-10 will be a tough plane to replace. It remains to be seen how well the F-35 will do in fulfilling the role of the A-10 Warthog.
__________________ "It doesn't take a hero to order men into battle. It takes a hero to be one of those men who goes into battle." - Norman Schwarskopf, Commander of Desert Storm Operations  Last edited by tomtom22; December 17th, 2006 at 01:01. |
|
|
|
December 16th, 2006
| Post 5 |
| Spam King | I like the jump-jet style. The USSR tooled around with something similar to that system in the late 1980s with the Yak-141.
__________________ "What about a Guest Host?" "I'll pretend I didn't hear that." |
|
|
|
December 18th, 2006
| Post 6 |
| Tribuni Angusticlavii | Hmm, them Rusky's always trying to beat US to the punch.  |
|
|
|
December 18th, 2006
| Post 7 |
| Canuckus Maximus  | good to hear the bird flies, but replacing the A-10 is going to be hard to do.
__________________ "I find your lack of faith disturbing." |
|
|
|
December 20th, 2006
| Post 8 |
| Forum Health Inspector | So waitaminute...all those vids we've been seeing on TV with the F-35 flying around were just digital creations?
__________________  Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" -- Isaiah 6:8 |
|
|
|
December 20th, 2006
| Post 9 |
| Nuclear Duck Hunter | I think you have been seeing F-22 videos, Lt. It's been in the air and getting a lot of coverage.
__________________ “War is an ugly thing but not the ugliest of things; the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feelings which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse.” —John Stuart Mill |
|
|
|
December 20th, 2006
| Post 10 |
| Forum Health Inspector | Hmmm...I could have sworn I saw videos of the JSF in flight on the Military Channel and the History Channel... |
|
|
