President Trump Says Sikorsky Is Paying for New White House Helipad After Helicopter Upgrade

President Donald Trump said Monday that Sikorsky Aircraft is covering the cost of a new helipad at the White House, describing the project as necessary because upgraded helicopters used for Marine One are powerful enough, he said, to damage grass on the White House grounds.

Trump’s remarks, reported by The Hill, tied the helipad work to the incoming or new Sikorsky helicopter configuration used to transport the president, with the president saying the aircraft’s performance made a dedicated landing area on the property important to prevent damage to the lawn.

The report puts the figure at $6 million for the new helipad, with Trump characterizing the payment as coming from Sikorsky, the manufacturer of the helicopters used for Marine One.

It was not immediately clear from the reporting when the helipad is scheduled to be completed, whether the work is part of a larger White House aviation or grounds improvement effort, or whether additional contractors or federal procurement steps are involved in the construction beyond the asserted company funding.

The White House did not provide a contemporaneous record in the material reviewed for this story from the White House website, a Federal Register publication, or a federal contracting notice detailing the helipad’s scope, procurement process, or funding arrangement.

Officials and watchdogs typically focus on federal property improvements and the use of company payments for government facilities, including questions about whether any part of the work is conducted through federal procurement, reimbursed through contracts, or handled through separate arrangements with private vendors.

With the helipad project described as company-funded by the president but lacking an official documentation trail in the materials reviewed, the next steps for confirming the full factual record would be reviewing White House statements, any contracting or permitting documents for the site, and any procurement disclosures that may be tied to the Marine One helicopter program or White House capital improvements.