F-35 fighter wraps up first test flight

F-35 Lightning II first flight - video powered by Metacafe
The costliest international warplane project, the F-35 Lightning 2 Joint Strike Fighter, safely completed its first test flight on Friday, advancing a $276.5 billion program financed by the United States and eight other countries.

The test flight achieved most of its goals, but an air data probe used to sense speed and altitude flashed a warning that killed plans to raise the landing gear, officials of Lockheed Martin Corp. said. Lockheed is developing three models of the radar-evading, multi-role fighter jet.

The flight over Fort Worth, Texas, lasted 38 minutes -- about two-thirds the 60 minutes or so the Pentagon's program office had projected earlier this month.

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