White House Helicopter
RIVERSIDE (CNS) – A project to completely restore the Sikorsky VH-3A helicopter that served as a means of short-range air transport for President Richard Nixon was underway Tuesday at the March Field Air Museum.
The Sea King chopper was relocated to the museum last week by truck, removed from its customary station at the east end of the parking lot for the Richard Nixon Library & Museum in Yorba Linda and placed in a secure hangar at March Field in south Riverside.
The one-time U.S. Army and Marine rotorcraft will undergo a “complete restoration before returning as the centerpiece of a new education center,” the Library said in an online statement.
The education center will be an addition to the museum, featuring an “interactive, immersive” experience for visitors, according to the Library.
The Sikorsky was active not only during Nixon’s nearly eight years on Pennsylvania Avenue, but also during the two administrations that preceded his – – those of Lyndon Johnson and John F. Kennedy — operating from 1961 to 1976 as a kind of “flying Oval Office,” officials said.
“President Nixon flew aboard this helicopter on 181 missions, including to the Giza Pyramids in Egypt and into Vatican Square, where it was blessed by Pope Paul VI,” according to the Library. “This helicopter flew under the call sign `Marine One’ when operated by the Marine Corps, and `Army One’ when operated by the Army.”
The helicopter, which could be transported internationally aboard cargo aircraft whenever required by the White House, was removed from presidential service the year Nixon resigned, thereafter placed at the disposal of the Secret Service for training purposes.
After the VH-3A was deactivated, it went to the National Museum of the Marine Corps at Quantico, Virginia, but ultimately was placed on long-term loan to the Nixon Library by the National Archives & Records Administration. It has been a fixture on the museum grounds for two decades.
The March Field Air Museum said the helicopter’s restoration will be a “multi-year” effort, but provided no further details on the extent of work planned. The projected cost also was not disclosed.
The chopper arrived on the afternoon of June 29.
It will not be among the dozens of static aviation assets on display while it is being restored.
For More Riverside County News Visit www.zapinin.com