Lockheed Martin aircraft crashes in California
Wednesday, March 25, 2009, 4:49pm EDT | Modified: Wednesday, March 25, 2009, 4:58pm
Business Journal -
A Lockheed Martin-made Air Force aircraft -- which the defense giant calls “the best overall fighter in the world” -- crashed Wednesday in southern California.
The aircraft went down 35 miles northeast of Edwards Air Force Base in California during a test mission at about 10 a.m., according to an Air Force news release.
The condition of the pilot was unknown at the time and officers are investigating the accident, added the release. No other updates were available, said an Air Force spokesman.
On its Web site Bethesda-based Lockheed Martin Corp. boasts that the F-22 Raptor is “the only fighter capable of simultaneously conducting air-to-air and air-to-ground combat missions with near impunity.”
Each F-22 costs $143 million and there are 134 planes in the F-22 inventory, said an Air Force spokesman. The fifth-generation aircraft emerged from its testing and evaluation phase to gain operational status in December 2005.
A Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) spokesperson said all calls were being deferred to Edwards Air Force Base.
