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Test pilot Lt. Col. James Kromberg became the first military pilot to fly the F-35 Lightning II on 30 January. Kromberg is the director of operations of the 461st Flight Test Squadron at the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB, California. He took off from the Lockheed Martin facility in Fort Worth, Texas, flew the aircraft to 6,000 feet, and checked handling qualities at 15 degrees angle of attack. He then topped out at 12,000 feet to assess the F-35’s up-and-away flight-control response, engine performance, and formation-flying characteristics. Flight testing of AA-1, the designation for the first test aircraft, resumed on 7 December after a period of troubleshooting and planned ground tests.
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