Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX-1) was established in December 1947 as an experimental unit to test and evaluate helicopters and tactics. HMX-1 made history in May 1948 by making the first ship-to-shore helicopter lift. In September 1957, the squadron again made history when President Dwight D. Eisenhower, while vacationing in Rhode Island, was required to return to Washington D.C., on short notice. He boarded an HMX-1 UH-34 in Newport for a flight across the bay to Naval Air Station Quonset Point, marking the first time an American President had flown on a Marine Helicopter.
HMX-1 continues to provide helicopter transportation for the President and Vice President, and "Marine One" is the call sign used when the President is on board one of the HMX-1 Marine helicopters. The primary presidential helicopter is a Sikorsky VH-3D (Sea King). Uniquely designed for the for the President's use, this aircraft has a cruising speed of 110 knots (131 miles per hour) and a range of 450 miles. Marine One has flown in 32 Foreign countries and has landed at such faraway places as England's Windsor Castle, Japan's Akasaka Palace, Colombia's Bolivare Square, the Demilitarized Zone of South Korea, and Kuwait's Bayan Palace. The VH-60N (Blackhawk) and CH-46E (Sea Knight) have also been used as "Marine One." Other HMX-1 helicopters are used to, transport the Vice President, Cabinet members, and foreign dignitaries.
A "Yankee White" security clearance (whatever that is) is required to fly Marine One. It is one step above "Top Secret".Marine One Today:
In 1944, Franklin Delano Roosevelt became the first American President to travel by air, and for most of the next 20 years, various types of four-engine propeller-driven aircraft were used for presidential air travel. In 1962, a jet aircraft, a Boeing 707, was first purchased for use as Air Force One.
The current presidential fleet consists of two specially configured Boeing 747-200B series aircraft-tail numbers 28000 and 29000-with the Air Force designation VC25A. When the President is aboard either aircraft, or any other Air Force aircraft, the radio call sign is "Air Force One." These aircraft are part of Air Mobility Command's 89th Airlift Wing, based at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland. The VC-25A is capable of flying 9,600 miles without refueling and can accommodate up to 70 passengers. President Clinton's travel to the Far East and Russia in April 1996 marked the first around-the-world presidential trip for the VC-25A.Air Force One Today: