Skunk Works

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Skunk Works is an official pseudonym for Lockheed Martin's Advanced Development Programs (ADP), the company's tactical research and development arm. It is responsible for a number of aircraft designs, highly classified development programs, and exotic aircraft platforms. Although locations for this group are typically classified, publicly-known locations have been reported on United States Air Force manufacturing bases Plant 42 (Palmdale), Plant 4 (Fort Worth), and Plant 6 (Marietta). Skunk Works' history dates back to the original Lockheed Corporation and started with the P-38 Lightning in 1939 and the P-80 Shooting Star in 1943. During this time, the group was called Lockheed Advanced Development Projects. Skunk Works engineers subsequently developed the U-2, SR-71 Blackbird, F-117 Nighthawk, F-22 Raptor, and F-35 Lightning II, the latter being used in the air forces of several countries. The Skunk Works name was taken from the "Skonk Oil" factory in the comic strip Li'l Abner. The modern term "skunkworks" is widely used in American business, engineering, and technical fields to describe a group within an organization given a high degree of autonomy and unhampered by bureaucracy, with the task of working on advanced or secret projects.