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Aviation units · from 1947

HMX-1

Military unit.

History

Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX-1) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron responsible for the transportation of the president and vice president of the United States, heads of state, Department of Defense officials, and other VIPs as directed by the Marine Corps and White House Military Office. A Marine helicopter with the president aboard using the call sign "Marine One". Previously, HMX-1 was also tasked with operational test and evaluation (OT&E). This task was reassigned to VMX-1 in Yuma, Arizona; since the contract award of the new presidential helicopter in 2014 to Sikorsky Aircraft. However, HMX-1 assumed the temporary role of OT&E for the designated aircraft, because of its unique nature and mission as the transport of important people for the U.S. government. The VH-92A first flew in 2017 and became operational in 2024.

Nicknamed "Nighthawks", HMX-1 is headquartered at Marine Corps Air Facility Quantico, Virginia, and maintains detachments at Joint Base Anacostia–Bolling in Washington, D.C., and Joint Base Andrews Naval Air Facility in Maryland.

Text from Wikipedia: HMX-1, CC BY-SA 4.0, lightly trimmed.

Key dates

  1. 1946
    In 1946, General Roy S. Geiger observed the atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll and instantly recognized that atomic bombs could render amphibious landings difficult because of the dense concentrations of troops, ships, and material at the beachhead.
  2. 1950
    After the start of the Korean War, four HMX-1 helicopters were attached to VMO-6 and sent to help the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade at the Battle of Pusan Perimeter in 1950.
  3. 1957
    On 7 September 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower was vacationing in Newport, Rhode Island, when his immediate presence was needed at the White House.
  4. 1957
    Shortly after the 7 September 1957, mission from Newport, a naval aide to the president asked HMX-1 to evaluate landing helicopters on the South Lawn of the White House.
  5. 1957
    The first official presidential helicopter was the VH-34 Choctaw, beginning operations in September 1957, and replaced by the VH-3A Sea King beginning in 1962.
  6. 1959
    Olson to join him at a White House luncheon in 1959 at which Col.
  7. 1976
    Initially, the helicopter function was shared with the Army, but in 1976, the Marine Corps was assigned the sole responsibility and mission of providing helicopter support to the president worldwide.
  8. 2009
    On 16 July 2009, Marine One flew with an all-female crew for the first time, as the final flight of the first woman to fly the president: Major Jennifer Grieves.
  9. 2010
    The VXX program was restarted in 2010 and the Sikorsky VH-92 won the competition in 2014.

Dates and events quoted from the same Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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