President Obama arrives today but the US has been demonstrating their power and might throughout the week.
On Tuesday, three Bell Boeing V-22 Ospreys escorted Marine One to Kenyatta University grounds, in what was seen as a drill for Obama’s anticipated arrival at the institution on Sunday. They however threw a spin by doing the same at University of Nairobi graduation square yesterday.
The weird looking choppers attracted more attention that the real big deal; ‘Marine One’.
Technically, The name Marine One is assigned to the chopper only when the President is on board, but just like Air Force One, it has come to be accepted and widely used to refer to that green marine chopper that ferries the President, whether he’s on board or not.
In real sense, there are 23 of these ‘Marine Ones’, and at least 2 decoys must be used at any time. That perhaps answers the questions of those wondering what Obama has been using in Washington while his ‘Marine One’ is in Nairobi.
What more.. Pentagon last year awarded a contract to replace all 23 of them at a cost of $17 billion. The Daily Beast estimated that each chopper would cost $400 million, or roughly our entire Thika Superhighway.
What really is Marine One?
In the following slideshow, we look at some photos of its interior.
