Second Test Flight of Stealth Bomber May Be Saturday

The second test flight of the controversial B-2 Stealth bomber could take place as early as Saturday at Edwards Air Force Base in California, the Air Force announced today.

“The exact date of the flight will not be pre-announced but is presently scheduled to take place within a five-day time frame beginning Saturday,” the Air Force said.

The radar-evading bomber--at $530 million a copy the most expensive warplane ever built--successfully completed its maiden flight July 17.

The bat-like aircraft took off from the Northrop Corp.’s assembly plant in Palmdale and soared across the Mojave Desert at 10,000 feet for two hours before landing at Edwards, 25 miles from Palmdale.

The bomber was partially taken apart for analysis and inspection at Edwards after the flight and put back together.