President says contractor funded project after newer Marine One models risked lawn damage
President Trump said Monday that Lockheed Martin agreed to pay about $5 million toward a new granite helipad on the White House South Lawn, with construction already underway. The project is intended to address concerns that Sikorsky’s newer, more powerful Marine One helicopter models could damage the lawn’s surface during landings.
“Sikorsky is paying for it,” Trump told reporters Monday. “You know why? Because they didn’t tell us how powerful these helicopters were and they felt a little bit guilty.”
Lockheed’s Sikorsky unit manufactures the Marine One helicopters that transport the president. The company won a contract in 2014 to develop a new fleet of VH-92A models with more powerful engines, a program with overall costs of about $5 billion. Officials knew as early as 2018 that the newer models’ engines and auxiliary power unit could damage the lawn, the Wall Street Journal reported in May. The older VH-3D, which has served as Marine One for decades, lands on small boards placed on the lawn.
A Lockheed Martin spokeswoman said the company donated the funds to the National Park Service as part of “a long history of supporting projects in both the Washington, D.C., area and across the country.” The spokeswoman did not say when the donation was made. “Our engagement with the federal government is guided by rigorous ethics and compliance standards and conducted in full accordance with all applicable laws and regulations,” the company said.
The helipad is the latest in a series of renovations and events on the White House grounds under Trump. As previously reported, the president has pursued plans to demolish the East Wing to build a ballroom — a project that has faced legal challenges and also received a donation from Lockheed Martin.