Marine One
Using Air Force One would have been impractical over such a short distance, and there was no airfield near his home with a paved runway to support fixed-wing aircraft, so Eisenhower instructed his staff to investigate other modes of transport and a Sikorsky UH-34 Seahorse helicopter was commissioned.
[4] Improvements were made to both models of helicopter after their introduction, to take advantage of technological developments and to meet new mission requirements.
[8] The September 11 attacks led to agreement that the Marine One helicopter fleet needed significant upgrades to its communication, transportation, and security systems, but weight limitations prevented the changes.
[5] In April 2002, the Department of Defense began the VXX program, which assigned the Navy to design new presidential helicopters by 2011.
The helicopter's defenses were to include radar jamming and deception, to ward off anti-aircraft missiles; protection of key electronics against nuclear electromagnetic pulse; and an encrypted telecommunications system and videoconferencing.
Lockheed Martin blamed the Navy for the cost overruns, saying that more than 1,900 extra requirements were added to the project after the contract was signed.
Second, a complete review of the system's requirements was not made until 4 months after production started, and only then was it discovered that the VH-71's design could not meet the program's needs.
[11] This time, instead of running development and production concurrently, the Corps created an Initial Capabilities Document (ICD), which more clearly outlined the aircraft's requirements.
[11] In February 2010, the Navy asked private industry for input in an Analysis of Alternatives (AOA) to meet the project's needs.
Because the AOA contemplated a much longer process of design and production, the Navy said it intended to spend $500 million to keep the VH-3Ds and VH-60s flying.
[16] A VH-92 made its inaugural flight as Marine One on the afternoon of 19 August 2024, when President Joe Biden rode from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport to Soldier Field en route to the 2024 Democratic National Convention.
[18] More than 800 Marines supervise the operation of the Marine One fleet, which is based in MCAF Quantico, Virginia, with an additional operating location at Naval Support Facility Anacostia in the District of Columbia, but is more often seen in action on the South Lawn of the White House or at Joint Base Andrews Naval Air Facility in Maryland.
According to a story told by Bruce Babbitt, President Clinton, in his final days of office, while flying over and landing in a remote area near the Grand Canyon, found a Marine waiting on the rock ready to salute him.
[citation needed] At a presidential inauguration, the Marines offer the outgoing president a final flight from the Capitol to Joint Base Andrews.
[21][22][23] To add to the security of Marine One, every member of HMX-1 is required to pass a Yankee White background check before touching any of the helicopters used for presidential travel.
[18] Even if, during a foreign trip, the president does not use Marine One, at least one helicopter is on standby in a hangar of a local airport or air base to depart if need be.
