Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works division celebrates 75 years of service. As the creator of America’s first jet fighter, Skunk Works remains committed to innovating in the experimental aircraft department, and improving in speed, air mobility, and more.

Skunk Works was created in 1943 when Clarence “Kelly” Johnson was given permission to create an experimental engineering department to work on the secret XP-80 Shooting Star jet fighter. Johnson began by hand-picking his employees and working on a tight schedule that emphasized deadlines and budgets.

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