Gates says Lockheed F-35 fighter a major priority

* Gates underscores commitment to funding F-35

* First training squadron to start work in 2011

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md., Sept 16 (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Wednesday Lockheed Martin Corp's (LMT.N) F-35 fighter jet was a major leadership and budgetary priority for the U.S. military.

"I consider the F-35 program a major leadership priority, with all that entails with regard to funding, oversight and accountability," Gates told the annual conference of the Air Force Association.

Gates said next year's spending plan reflected a major commitment to the development and production of the F-35 -- with nearly half a billion dollars added to the FY 2010 budget to support the flight testing program.

"Our objective remains to equip the first training squadron at Eglin Air Force Base by 2011, and achieve initial operating capability for the Marines and Air Force in 2012 and 2013 respectively," Gates said.

Lockheed is developing three radar-evading F-35 models to replace at least 13 types of aircraft for 11 nations initially. The United States plans to buy 2,443 F-35s for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps, with purchases by eight partner nations to boost production to around 3,000.

Gates earlier this year said he would halt production of the Lockheed F-22 fighter at 187 planes, throwing his support behind the $300 billion F-35 program instead.

Last month he visited the Fort Worth, Texas, plant where Lockheed builds the F-35 amid mounting speculation the new fighter could face cuts as part of future Pentagon belt-tightening.

Gates told Lockheed executives during his visit how crucial it was to keep the program on cost and on schedule given tighter defense budgets, but said the most serious issues facing the fighter were behind it.

Air Force Major General C.D. Moore, the program's deputy executive officer, told reporters on Monday that he remained confident that the program could meet its cost and schedule targets, despite a third mishap involving the fighter's primary engine, which is built by United Technologies Corp (UTX.N). (Reporting by Jim Wolf and Andrea Shalal-Esa, editing by Dave Zimmerman)