1953: Presidential pilot Col. William G. Draper selected a C-121A Lockheed Constellation to transport the newly inaugurated President Eisenhower. Dubbed Columbine II, the four-engine aircraft was a military version of the famed Lockheed 749 airliner, recognized as one of the most beautiful commercial airliners of the piston-engine era.   View Enlargement (66KB)

1954: The Columbine III, a C-121E Lockheed Super Constellation entered presidential service. Eighteen feet longer than its predecessor, the C-121E model cruised at a speed of 355 miles per hour. The Super Constellation served as the Presidential aircraft until 1961 when President Eisenhower left office.   View Enlargement (69KB)

1957: On July 13, President Dwight D. Eisenhower became the first Chief Executive to fly in a helicopter when he took off from the White House lawn in a Bell H-13J (a three-seat 47J Ranger) as part of Operation Alert, an emergency evacuation exercise. During the Korean War, Bell Model 47s had evacuated more than 15,000 wounded personnel. The two Air Force H-13J aircraft were designated to fly the president to his Super Constellation airplane at National Airport (D.C.), to Camp David (MD) and to his farm in Gettysburg (PA). After their White house assignment, both aircraft transported high-ranking Department of Defense personnel. In July 1967, they were transferred to the Smithsonian Institution.   View Enlargement (34KB)

1960s-1980s: The Air Force's 89th Military Airlift Wing flew six Lockheed VC-140B light transport jets for special government and White House airlifts. Designed by Lockheed's celebrated Skunk Works in the late 1950s, the four-engine aircraft carried eight VIP passengers in a supplementary role to the President's 707 aircraft, and flew Presidents Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter and Reagan. The radio call sign "Air Force One" was now used whenever the President was aboard. The aircraft were retired in the 1980s.   View Enlargement (27KB)

Mid 1960s-early 1970s: President Johnson is shown aboard a single-engine Bell UH-1B helicopter. View Enlargement (67KB)

President Nixon also traveled aboard Bell twin-engine UH-1N aircraft.

1972-1989: HMX-1 Squadron acquired six Bell VH-1N helicopters for presidential transport in 1972. Variants of the twin-engine UH-1N aircraft, the VH-1N fuselages were manufactured on Bell's UH-1N production line in Texas, before being transferred to a secure area for completion. Four were painted with white doors and trim, designating presidential transport. Two were painted all green for carrying staff and other officials. All six were configured with VIP interiors, and were deployed frequently aboard Lockheed C-5 transports to support the travel needs of Presidents Ford, Carter and Reagan, and their families. Each aircraft contained seating for eight VIP passengers, wall-to-wall carpeting, heating and air conditioning. In 1982, the aircraft were refurbished with folding (instead of sliding) doors and an interior design chosen by Mrs. Reagan.

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1982-Present: Lockheed Martin designed and built upgraded avionics systems for the VH-3D and VH-60N Marine One aircraft, which it continues to support today. Lockheed Martin's support facilities are located near the Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland.

2004: In March, Lockheed Martin opened a US101 program office near Naval Air Station Patuxent River, MD, to support the Marine Corps' Presidential Helicopter Replacement program.    View Enlargement (142KB)

Spring 2005: The Lockheed Martin-led Team US101 is entrusted to provide the next generation VH-71 presidential helicopter to the White House as a safe and secure "Oval Office in the Sky" for America's Commander in Chief.

Construction begins on a new Presidential Helicopter Integration Facility at Lockheed Martin Systems Integration - Owego in New York. Here, the VH-71 Presidential Helicopter will be equipped with sophisticated electronics and communications gear necessary to make the aircraft an "Oval Office in the Sky."