Lockheed Martin engineers are pouring over the results of several ground speed taxi tests of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter before giving the OK to take the new fighter into the air. In the last taxi test Tuesday, Lockheed’s chief test pilot Jon Beesley sped down the runway at speeds up to 127 mph. A company statement said Lockheed would alert the news media “upon conclusion of the flight.”
The emphasis on speed in the Pentagon’s newly unveiled slate of acquisition reforms may come with increased near-term cost increases, analysts say. But according to U.S. defense officials, the new weapons-buying construct provides the military with enough flexibility to prevent runaway budget overruns in major programs.
