Cyclic Hotline
22nd Jun 2006, 03:26
Presidential helicopter arrives at Nixon Library
The 6-ton Sikorsky Sea King was being refurbished at March Air Force Base in Riverside County.
By ERIK ORTIZ
The Orange County Register
YORBA LINDA – The now-retired helicopter that flew four American presidents arrived today at the Richard M. Nixon Library & Birthplace, where it will be permanently displayed as part of a public exhibition opening July 1.
The chopper, a 6-ton Sikorsky Sea King valued at $1 million, was being refurbished at March Air Force Base in Riverside County. It came via truck and passers-by have already begun surveying it from the sidewalk, said library spokesman Sandy Quinn.
"We're going to put a 10-foot-high wall to surround it," Quinn said. "We still have to put the final touches for the restoration. We expect to put the blades on it on Friday and put in the transmission and the doors on."
The helicopter once flew Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon and Ford. Among Nixon's famed excursions on the Sikorsky include his visits to Egypt, China and a tour of Vietnam's combat zone in 1969.
Nixon's presidential library also houses the presidential limousine that transported Presidents Johnson, Nixon, Ford and Carter.
The 6-ton Sikorsky Sea King was being refurbished at March Air Force Base in Riverside County.
By ERIK ORTIZ
The Orange County Register
YORBA LINDA – The now-retired helicopter that flew four American presidents arrived today at the Richard M. Nixon Library & Birthplace, where it will be permanently displayed as part of a public exhibition opening July 1.
The chopper, a 6-ton Sikorsky Sea King valued at $1 million, was being refurbished at March Air Force Base in Riverside County. It came via truck and passers-by have already begun surveying it from the sidewalk, said library spokesman Sandy Quinn.
"We're going to put a 10-foot-high wall to surround it," Quinn said. "We still have to put the final touches for the restoration. We expect to put the blades on it on Friday and put in the transmission and the doors on."
The helicopter once flew Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon and Ford. Among Nixon's famed excursions on the Sikorsky include his visits to Egypt, China and a tour of Vietnam's combat zone in 1969.
Nixon's presidential library also houses the presidential limousine that transported Presidents Johnson, Nixon, Ford and Carter.