A new presidential helicopter will have Tarrant County ties.<\/p>\n
As the White House builds a large granite landing pad for a Sikorsky VH-92A Patriot helicopter<\/a>, Fort Worth-area aircraft workers will play a small role in improving the operational efficiency of the next-generation, vertical-lift presidential aircraft with the code name Marine One.<\/p>\n Lockheed Martin Corp. and its subsidiary, Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., were awarded a $107 million contract by Maryland-based Naval Air Systems Command in July to design, test and integrate improved main rotor blades for the aircraft. The new VH-92A blades will be designed to increase aircraft operational performance.<\/p>\n Sikorsky Aircraft has an office in Grapevine, across the county from Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. headquarters at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, a company spokesperson told the Report.\u00a0<\/p>\n Although most of the work will be done in Stratford, Connecticut, and West Palm Beach, Florida, a small percentage \u2014 about 2% \u2014 will be done locally to advance the new rotor blades for the helicopter, according to the July 31 contract<\/a>.<\/p>\n About $18.4 million was obligated at the time of the award.<\/p>\n The VH-92A Patriot, selected by the Navy in 2014, is intended to replace the aging presidential fleet that includes the VH-3D Sea King<\/a> and the VH-60N White Hawk<\/a> helicopters. The new aircraft, also called a \u201cWhite Top\u201d due to its green-and-white livery, will also be used to transport the vice president. The aircraft has a heavily shielded interior and a communications array for classified missions.<\/p>\n Sikorsky said its helicopters have flown every president since 1957.<\/p>\n The Marine Corps said the Presidential Helicopter Replacement Program<\/a> has successfully acquired new aircraft for integrating government-defined mission systems into a commercial helicopter, while maintaining Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness certification.<\/p>\n The program \u2014 which has a total of 23 aircraft, including two for testing \u2014 took six years to move from the aircraft\u2019s developmental phase to the delivery of the first operational helicopter while meeting performance requirements and remaining under budget, according to the Marine Corps.<\/p>\n \u201cThe VH-92A Patriot brings increased capabilities for this no-fail mission supporting the commander-in-chief around the world,\u201d Lt. Gen. Bradford Gering, assistant commandant for the Marine Corps, said when the final aircraft was delivered in 2024. \u201cSikorsky\u2019s contribution to Marine aviation has enabled your United States Marine Corps to be a ready and lethal fighting force.\u201d<\/p>\n President Donald Trump announced in July that the White House would construct a custom helipad designed to withstand the helicopter\u2019s downdraft since the aircraft burned the lawn. The helipad is estimated to cost between $5 million to $6 million, with Sikorsky paying a significant portion, Trump said.<\/p>\n A Lockheed spokesperson told ABC News that the company made a contribution<\/a> to the National Park Service.<\/p>\n During a South Lawn visit<\/a> with reporters on Wednesday, Trump signed a stone that will be inserted into the partially built helipad.<\/p>\n \u201cSo now with the helipad, we won\u2019t have any problem with the grass,\u201d he told reporters in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n Eric E. Garcia is senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n