OT: $6.1B, Marine One Options

[siverson]

I don't know anything about helicopters, but doesn't $265M each sound like a lot?!?!

http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/02/02/marine....e.ap/index.html

-Steve

[Jake Raby]

I have crewed an H-3 (VH-1) in HMX-1 I was attached nthere for 6 months in the 90's as a Marine.

Thats the best damn Helo ever built.

They are making a HUGE mistake! I think we'll end up with another damn V-22 Osprey- a big piece of shit.

The V-22 is the only reason I got out of the Marine- After one flight on the bastard I saw my life flash in fron of my eyes and re-enlistment was out of the picture! The V-22 was the replacement for the CH-46 (that was what I primarily crewed and wrenched on in the Marines) and the 46 still beats it! The NEWEST 46 I worked on was a 1967!!!!!

That H-3 will still be flying when the new piece of shit is junk....

I'll post some pics of the inside of one if I get a chance and there are a couple of pics of them on my site under my bio page..

Everything on the VH-1 (Marine 1) is scheduled at 1/2 life. That means a 10 hour inspection done in the fleet would be a 5hr inspection on a VH-1... A part that has a 200 hour life in the fleet is tossed away at 100 hours, etc. etc.

I hated it at HMX because all we did was BS work and polish shit and take Helos apart and put them back together moving the aircraft.....

What you guys don't realize is that everytime the Pres. goes somewhere out of the country a C-5 Galaxy gets there a week before he does with a half squadron of Marines and 5 of those VH-1s all disassembled in the belly of the C-5. The planes are rolled out and assembled while inside a security perimeter. No pics are allowed to be taken and no one is allowed in the hangar without security clearance.

As for being "Staged" they are not just positioned throughout the country waiting to haul Bushy around.....

Makes you wonder how I got pics, Clinton's Coffee cup and a pair of Shot glasses etched with the Presidential Seal.....

What sucks is the crew may only fly the President 50 miles for all that damn work! Then tear everything down, pack it all back up on the C-5 and do it somewhere else a few days later.

It sucked ass, I was glad to be working on all the old aircraft with bullet holes in them from Nam after that! I think the worst part was having to "Play" like you are a Marine all the time. Unifom inspections twice a week got really old for an engine mechanic working 12 hour shifts. It was good for the resume though.... maybe some day it'll count for something.