Biden takes first ride in new Marine One as Sikorsky completes delivery

The US Marine Corps last week received the final batch of its 23 new VH-92A Patriot presidential transport helicopters, an aircraft best known as Marine One when it transports the American commander in chief.

Sikorsky, a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin, delivered the last VH-92A Patriot helicopter on August 14 during a ceremony at the company’s facility in Owego, New York, Lockheed and Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) announced Monday.

“This delivery represents a significant milestone and a new chapter in the 67-year history of the Marines providing helicopter transport for the President of the United States,” said Lt. Gen. Bradford Gering, deputy commandant of Naval Aviation, in a statement. “The VH-92A Patriot provides expanded capabilities for this resilient mission supporting the Commander in Chief around the world.”

The VH-92A will carry the same iconic dark green and white livery as previous Marine One helicopters and will bear the same “White Top” nickname as the older models.

President Joe Biden took his first flight aboard the newest Marine One on Monday after years of delays in the program to replace the aging aircraft that carry the president and vice president.

Biden boarded the helicopter after landing on Air Force One in Chicago, where he will speak at the Democratic National Convention on Monday night. His first presidential flight took him from O’Hare International Airport to the parking lot of Chicago’s Soldier Field, which is often used as a landing spot for presidential travel.

This was a key milestone in a two-decade-long process to replace Vietnam-era helicopters, some of which have been used to transport presidents since the 1970s.

The Bush administration had initially attempted to purchase new helicopters to improve communications and operational capabilities after September 11, 2001. However, President Barack Obama dropped this initiative after costs were drastically exceeded.

NAVAIR said the new helicopters would offer better performance and be able to carry a larger payload than the VH-3D and VH-60N, and would have improved crew coordination and communication systems.

According to NAVAIR, two of the 23 VH-92A helicopters will be used for testing purposes, while the rest will be used for operational purposes. This will ensure that there are enough helicopters available to transport the president, carry out necessary maintenance work and train pilots and flight crews.

The new program was launched by the Obama administration and the helicopter, dubbed the Patriot by its manufacturer, was first unveiled to the public during the Trump administration. But problems with the secure onboard communications system – needed to allow the president to hold classified conversations and make military decisions in an emergency – as well as a tendency to scorch the South Lawn of the White House, led to years of delays to the program.

The Marine Corps reported last year that the communications problems had been resolved, but it was not clear whether changes to the exhaust system had eliminated the threat to the White House lawn.

The Marines have been using the VH-92 helicopters in regular service for several years, including for test flights around Washington DC and to transport White House staff and security personnel.

The new helicopters are based on the commercially available Sikorsky S-92 and are larger and have a longer range than the older VH-3D and VH-60N models.