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April 6, 1942 Life
 [Table of Contents]
Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early
technology. See articles from Life magazine,
published 1883-1972. All copyrights hereby acknowledged.
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An April 1942 issue of Life
magazine, just four months into WWII, carried this full-page advertisement
celebrating the Lockheed P-38 Lightning, a revolutionary fighter aircraft hailed
as the world' s fastest - nearing the speed of sound - with unmatched
maneuverability, outclassing enemy planes in combat. Built by Lockheed for the
U.S. Army and British RAF, the P-38 embodied American ingenuity and freedom,
flown by daring pilots defending democracy. The ad positions the Lightning as a
symbol of U.S. air supremacy, critical to Allied victory in WWII, while
promoting Lockheed's role in advancing aviation for both wartime protection and
postwar progress. The closing tagline, "Look to Lockheed for Leadership,"
reinforces the company's wartime prestige and vision for the future. At the
time, Lockheed Aircraft Corp. and Martin Aircraft Corp. were separate companies;
they merged in 1995. I worked at the L-Mart Syracuse, NY, division designing
radar in the late 1990s.
Lockheed Aircraft Corporation
 Design for Daring
An airplane so fast it nears the speed of sound, so maneuverable in battle it
out-points and outflies its enemies.
Lockheed builds such a pilot-inspiring fighter ... the "Lightning" Interceptor
Pursuit ... builds it for the U. S. Army and the R. A. F. ... a design for daring
conceived and built by free Americans - flown now by free fighters for all democracy.
It is a plane second to none ... a fighter universally called the world's
fastest, a
Lockheed worthy of the important part it is playing in the powerful air force of
the United Nations ... an air force that America now builds to win world air supremacy,
key to victory in modern war.
... for Protection today and Progress tomorrow
Look to Lockheed for Leadership
Lockheed Aircraft Corporation • Burbank, California
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