How many Marines does it take to lift President Bush?

[thedrifter]

How many Marines does it take to lift President Bush?

President Bush paid a visit today to Marine Helicopter Squadron One, known as HMX-1, at its base in Quantico, Va. The unit is responsible for White House helicopter operations -- a role it has played since 1957, when Dwight D. Eisenhower made the first presidential helicopter flight.

Bush was in Quantico to address the current graduating class at the FBI Academy, and made a short detour (by Marine One helicopter, of course) to the Marine Corps Air Station there to thank the Marines and sailors for the eight years of transportation they have provided during his presidency.

In return, the Marines gave him parts of a chopper -- a piece of a tail rotor and a window.

As for the size of the squadron that provides the airlift -- it's slightly more than 700 people.

-- James Gerstenzang

Photo: Tim Sloan / AFP / Getty Images

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Marine One treasures for Bush

Posted by: Tabassum Zakaria

QUANTICO, Va., Oct 30 (Reuters) - Aside from the treasured memories, President George W. Bush will probably take back to Texas a souvenir or two from his years in the White House.

And as president he gets more than just T-shirts and mugs.

On Thursday, the Marines and sailors who take care of Marine One presented Bush with a little piece of the presidential helicopter to take home.

Any helicopter that carries the president is called Marine One and only a handful of senior aides get a lift in it. When Bush goes out of town, he takes the helicopter from the White House South Lawn to Andrews Air Force Base where his plane, Air Force One, is waiting.

He also flies the helicopter to the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland and has flown in Marine One for aerial views of disaster areas such as in the aftermath of hurricanes. And the fleet is also used occasionally to ferry foreign leaders to Camp David as well as Vice President Dick Cheney.

On Thursday Bush visited the Marine Helicopter Squadron One Hangar to thank those who fly and service the official helicopters and received a gift — a piece of the helicopter’s tail rotor and a window.

The rectangular window was framed. “It was a window that he used to look out,” White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said.

Stanzel sought to allay some concerns among the press corps traveling with Bush that the presidential flight may become a touch too breezy with a missing window, telling reporters dryly that the squadron had a few extra ones for the helicopters.

Ellie