President Donald Trump has started building a permanent helipad on the White House South Lawn. The unannounced project aims to protect the iconic grass from a new fleet of presidential helicopters but risks altering a historic vista that has defined the American presidency for nearly seven decades.
Donald Trump reportedly building helipad near White House
Workers erected a tall fence around the site and laboured into Monday night, three individuals with direct knowledge told The Washington Post. The helipad will sit close to the South Portico, where Marine One traditionally lands.
The urgency stems from a design flaw in the new presidential helicopters. Sikorsky’s VH-92A Patriot directs exhaust heat straight down. Officials feared the powerful downdraft would leave ugly burn marks on the South Lawn every time the president travels. Lockheed Martin, Sikorsky’s parent company, has chased a solution but found none, so it will contribute $5 million to help fund the construction.
Neither Donald Trump’s administration nor the Marine Corps commented on the helipad project’s schedule or final price tag. Aides reportedly have characterised it as a practical security measure rather than a cosmetic upgrade. That framing sets it apart from other Trump-era changes. Thus, including a paved-over Rose Garden and gold trim added to the Oval Office.
Ray L’Heureux, a retired Marine colonel who once led the presidential helicopter squadron, said leaders clearly deemed the step operationally unavoidable. “The new programme is a costly one, and not using the capability is bad optics all around,” he noted. He stressed that dedicated helicopter access remains critical for both smooth logistics and presidential security.
Previous presidents considered permanent landing pads and ultimately walked away from the idea. They balked at losing the visual of a commander-in-chief crossing living grass to board a helicopter, a ritual spanning nearly 70 years.
All in all, the scorched-grass problem now has a concrete fix, but the green expanse that framed countless historic departures is now changed.
