Trump's latest White House renovation as new Marine One helicopter burns up South Lawn

By ROSS IBBETSON, ASSOCIATE EDITOR Published: 20:16, 18 May 2026 | Updated: 20:26, 18 May 2026 Donald Trump is plotting to rip up the White House South Lawn and pave it with a permanent helipad to stop his powerful new Marine One from scorching the turf. The helipad would be the latest renovation in a raft of sweeping changes, chief among them the 90,000-square-foot ballroom which resulted in the demolition of the East Wing. The culprit is the VH-92A Patriot, Lockheed Martin's $200 million Sikorsky aircraft replacing the VH-3D Sea King that has flown every president since Gerald Ford. The Patriot's exhaust can burn up the grass, especially in hot and dry conditions, people familiar with the plans told the Wall Street Journal. A government watchdog flagged in 2018 that the Patriot's engines and auxiliary power unit pump out enough heat to damage landing zones such as the South Lawn. The Patriot, built on the commercial S-92 airframe, is a far bigger beast than its predecessor. Its 27,700lb maximum takeoff weight is some six tons heavier than the Sea King's, and it runs hotter and harder. The chopper made its public debut at Trump's 2019 Independence Day military parade but didn't fly a president until August 2024 when Joe Biden was in Chicago for the Democratic National Convention. The Patriot has flown Trump numerous times outside Washington, but neither he nor Biden has ever taken it to or from the South Lawn. A developmental Sikorsky VH-92A Patriot conducts landing and take-off testing at the White House South Lawn, Washington DC, on September 22, 2018 President Donald Trump boards Marine One (the VH-3D Sea King) as he departs the White House en route to London on September 16, 2025 in Washington, DC The decision follows years of failed attempts to modify the Patriot so it can safely land and take off from the South Lawn. The Sea King lands on small boards slipped beneath its wheels moments before it touches down. The Marine Corps had meant to mothball the Sea King this year but will now keep the aging fleet aloft until at least 2027. Trump is expected to install a helipad at Mar-a-Lago this summer when the club closes for the season. The Palm Beach town council is considering a proposal which would allow the President to continue using the helipad after he leaves office, which the Secret Service argues is necessary as long as Trump continues living at the estate. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.