Sept. 18, 2000, the Boeing Joint Strike Fighter X-32A concept demonstrator took off on its first flight from Palmdale, CA, meeting a major program milestone. The flight, from Palmdale to Edwards Air Force Base, CA, marked the aircraft's entry into a five-month flight-test program with approximately 50 test flights totaling about 100 hours to validate the JSF's flying qualities and performance for conventional and aircraft carrier operations. During flight test, Boeing demonstrated how its design reduced risk in key areas while meeting all of the customers' requirements.