H.G. Barnes walks through a build of the Italeri 1/72 proposed VH-71 "Marine One" Presidential helicopter kit.

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Thanks Gino.

"Obviously there was no way for Italeri to include in their subject overview how much of an appalling waist of tax payer dollars the Obama administration purposely dumped into the trash project bin. Deemed a $3.3 billion dollar failure, the fleet of 9 were sold to the Canadian's for spare parts at a bargain price of $165 million... by the way that included shipping, handling and technical support!"

1. You did a great job on this model, congratulations.

2. I come here to admire models, like yours, and learn new tricks, not for political commentary.

3. That being said, the VH-71 was in trouble long before President Obama took office. By 2007, the estimated cost of developing and modifying the aircraft had risen by 40% to $2.4 billion and had passed the $4.2 billion expected for the production of the fleet. In March 2008, the program cost had risen and was projected to cost a total $11.2 billion, or about $400 million per helicopter. This program was being scrutinized by the GAO and the Pentagon during the Bush era. President Obama decided no president needed a $400M helicopter.

Thank you for the complements and for your opinions. Another feature is on the way and, happily, has no politics within, just commentary about the kit.