The first F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter test aircraft-dubbed AA-1-in the Air Force’s conventional takeoff and landing configuration arrives at Edwards AFB, Calif., for three weeks of testing. AA-1 is not a production-equivalent version. (See the Dec. 19, 2008 entry on AF-1.)
Secretary of Defense Austin Lloyd III met with his counterparts from Australia, Japan and the Philippines to discuss bolstering defense ties on May 2. The discussion included plans for joint F-35 exercises with Japan and Australia in the coming years.