Lockheed Martin Flies First T-50A Upgraded Aircraft for T-X Competition

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Jun 02, 2016, 09:38 ET

FORT WORTH, Texas, June 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) successfully completed the initial flight test of its T-50A configured aircraft. The T-50A is the company's aircraft offering in the U.S. Air Force's Advanced Pilot Training competition.

"The aircraft in its new configuration with the 5^th Gen cockpit and other upgrades performed flawlessly," said Mark Ward, Lockheed Martin T-50A lead test pilot, after his flight in Sacheon, South Korea. "I have no doubt this aircraft will close the gap which currently exists between the trainer fleet and 5^th Generation fighters."

Lockheed Martin T-50A jet trainer takes flight in T-X competition

The T-50A is low risk and ready now. It builds on the proven heritage of the T-50 with more than 100 T-50s flying today—100,000 flight hours and counting—and more than 1,000 pilots.

The T-50A is the only current offering that meets all APT requirements and can deliver those capabilities on schedule at the lowest risk to the customer. Lockheed Martin teams studied clean-sheet alternatives and determined they pose prohibitive risk to APT cost and schedule requirements. The T-50A delivers the performance and capabilities needed to prepare pilots to fly, fight and win with 5^th Generation fighter aircraft.

Lockheed Martin is currently standing up its T-50A Final Assembly and Checkout site in Greenville, South Carolina.

The T-50A was developed jointly by Lockheed Martin and Korea Aerospace Industries. The accompanying T-50A Ground-Based Training System features innovative technologies that deliver an immersive, synchronized ground-based training platform.

About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 125,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services.

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SOURCE Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company