VH-92A Presidential Helicopter Has Reached IOC | TurDef

Air

VH-92A Presidential Helicopter Has Reached IOC

29 April 2022 356

VH-92A Presidential Helicopter Has Reached IOC

The US Navy Department announced that the US Marine Corps-operated VH-92A presidential and US presidential helicopters had reached Initial Operational Capability (IOC). The Marine Corps operates a helicopter fleet to transport the President, Vice President, and other senior officials. When the President is aboard, these planes are referred to as “Marine One.”

The helicopter reached the IOC officially on 28 December 2021, but the results are only announced now. The IOC VH-92A was reported in the Navy Department’s budget spotlight for the fiscal year 2023 and published this mid-April. Marine One is flown by Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX-1). HMX-1 operates presidential helicopters, the VH-3D Sea King and VH-60N Black Hawk. The fiscal 2023 budget proposal funds the VH-92A program at 45.6 billion USD.

VH-92A Presidential Helicopter Has Reached IOC

Wide Band Line of Sight (WBLOS) communication capabilities, cockpit upgrades, government equipment interoperability and software upgrades are available on the helicopter. The planned VH-92A fleet includes 21 operational helicopters and two test aircraft. The Standard Operational Capability (SOC) of the VH-92A is scheduled to be achieved in the second quarter of fiscal 2023. In 2014, the Department of the Navy selected Sikorsky to develop the VH-92A to replace the ageing 11 VH-3D and 8 VH-60N helicopters. The VH-3Ds were placed in service in 1974, and the VH-60s entered service in the 1980s.