Marine One diverted to Luton Airport while ferrying President Trump to begin his trip home from a state visit to the UK. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the helicopter had a minor hydraulic issue.
The VH-3D Sea King, one of three deployed to RAF Northolt for President Trump’s second state visit, was carrying President Donald Trump from Chequers – the UK Prime Minister’s official country residence – to London Stansted Airport, where VC-25A 92-9000 waited on the tarmac to take on the Air Force One callsign. News footage showed the President boarding aircraft 159357 at Chequers, with a second VH-3D departing in formation as is usual practice.
Only one VH-3D subsequently arrived at Stansted, with the formation diverting en route to London Luton Airport where President Trump switched to the second airframe. At the time of writing, 159357 is believed to still be on the ground at Luton. The second aircraft would have immediately assumed the callsign ‘Marine One’ as soon as the President boarded.
A lone VH-3 Sea King has arrived at London Stansted with @POTUS on board as ‘Marine 1’.
It’s being reported that the other VH-3 Sea King may have made a divert into Luton, and President Trump transferred helicopter.
Videos: https://t.co/3f1AHpm0Pn https://t.co/DAvZGWxRU8 pic.twitter.com/IdQky1Qgw5
— CobraEmergency (@CobraEmergency) September 18, 2025
Media inquiries to the White House Press Secretary, Karline Leavitt, eventually led to a statement being released confirming that the President’s helicopter had suffered from a “minor hydraulic fault”. In an uncommon, though not unprecedented, move, the President was moved across to the other aircraft. While also helpful for security reasons, essentially acting as a decoy, this is a pertinent reminder that the use of two or three HMX-1 ‘white top’ helicopters for each Presidential movement is also important for redundancy reasons.
Friday at London Stansted, the ‘weather gods’ aligned as HMX-1 VH-3Ds & US Army CH-47Fs practised ahead of POTUS Trump’s UK state visit (Sept 17–18). A rainbow framed the iconic VH-3D (159357) on approach—a rare, magical aviation moment captured here by Jay Carter. 🌈🚁 pic.twitter.com/rAHRqp4aIb
— AeroResource (@AeroResource) September 14, 2025
The VH-3D Sea Kings are the only remaining Sea Kings in U.S. military service, with the airframes having originally been delivered many decades ago. Despite this, the aircraft, which are maintained to an extraordinary standard and fly a relatively low number of hours, remain remarkably reliable. According to the 2025 Marine Aviation Plan, the VH-3D fleet is set to be withdrawn by 2026 in favor of the new VH-92A Patriot. The VH-60N Whitehawk helicopters are expected to soldier on until 2030. However, these dates, as they have previously, may be changed according to operational requirements.
The helicopters are shipped across the Atlantic in the cargo hold of U.S. Air Force C-17A Globemaster IIIs. As support aircraft for this trip, the VIP aircraft were joined by U.S. Army Chinooks detached from Germany. The MV-22B Ospreys of HMX-1 are occasionally flown across the ocean, with assistance from KC-130J refueling aircraft, to support Presidential visits, but the use of Chinooks has become more and more common.
Part of the decision making for this trip may have been the number of engagements which involved the helicopters landing in historic parks and gardens, like at Regent’s Park, London, and in the grounds of Windsor Castle and Chequers. The extreme exhaust from the Osprey’s tilting engines have caused issues previously, destroying makeshift landing pads and burning grass, neither of which would likely be appreciated in these historic areas. Similar scorching issues have been encountered with the VH-92A.
State Visit
The first U.S. President to make more than one state visit to the United Kingdom, President Trump was handed the invitation from King Charles III by Prime Minister Keir Starmer in February 2025. Trump previously made a state visit in 2019, an occasion which is usually offered once per President. The fact President Trump is only the second person to serve two non-consecutive terms, and the first since the invention of rapid international travel, likely helped to make this possible, alongside a desire by the UK Government – headed by the Labour Party since 2024 for the first time in 14 years – to attract U.S. investments into the UK and solidify American foreign policy commitments to NATO and Ukraine.
A state visit is the most formal type of visit a foreign leader can make, with state visits to the UK involving a massive ceremonial display and extensive time with the reigning Monarch. A state banquet is also held, with dignitaries from both nations invited. This time, unusually, the U.S. President was hosted for a state visit at Windsor Castle, rather than Buckingham Palace. President Trump is not the first U.S. President to have an overnight stay at Windsor, but he is the first to have a state visit hosted there. This was due to intensive refurbishment works currently underway at Buckingham Palace.
The focal point at Windsor also allowed the President, alongside First Lady Melania Trump, to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, who Trump is said to have held in very high regard.
🇺🇸 🇬🇧 This afternoon, The President and Mrs. Trump laid a wreath at the Tomb of Queen Elizabeth II. The President and the First Lady spent time with The late Queen during their State Visit in 2019. Following Her Majesty’s death in 2022, President Trump released a tribute to her,… pic.twitter.com/2MzX4NtMlj
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 17, 2025
A military parade in the grounds at Windsor was concluded with a flypast by the Royal Air Force’s Red Arrows display team. The flypast was also originally due to include U.S. Air Force and Royal Air Force F-35 Lightning IIs, but their participation was withdrawn due to low cloud. While the F-35 is more than capable of operating in inclement weather, the additional risk cannot always be justified in peacetime. The Red Arrows, meanwhile, practice their formation flying on a regular basis through the year, including in low visibility conditions, and are therefore more able to adjust to difficult weather.
🔵⚪️🔴 Over Windsor Castle – the Red Arrows provide a flypast to mark the State Visit of the President of the United States to the United Kingdom. #RedArrows | #UK | #US | #POTUS | #StateVisit | #USinUK | #RAF | #Windsor pic.twitter.com/ZGpFarVm8M
— Red Arrows (@rafredarrows) September 17, 2025
