Thread by @MartynMcL

EXC Donald Trump exported his luxury helicopter for charters at his lossmaking Scottish resorts. Clients included wealthy Russians. But Trump Org's sent it back to the US amid waning demand & “anger” at TRUMP brand. My @TheScotsman investigation. Thread👇scotsman.com/news/politics/…

Here is the helicopter in Q. A Sikorsky S-76B, one of the world’s most sought after aircraft, used by air forces the world over and the super-wealthy. Trump owns not one, but three. This one predominantly serviced Trump Turnberry. POTUS flew in it whenever visiting Scotland.

The S-76B was shipped to Scotland in June 2014, two months after Trump bought Turnberry. At the time, he said the “incredible” helicopter would bring in a “tremendous amount of business” to Turnberry, Trump International in Aberdeenshre & Trump Doonbeg in Ireland.

Trump charged up to £15,000 for a “couple of hours’” use of the aircraft - an “eyewatering” cost as one go-between who dealt with rich clients put it, yet plenty of wealthy individuals stumped up, including numerous Russian nationals.

After Trump became president, the charter business suffered - that’s according to Richard Stubbs, a pilot and co-founder of Cardinal Helicopter Services, a Blackpool-based firm which operated the Sikorsky on the Trump Org’s behalf.

In fact, a decision was taken to offer clients renting Trump’s helicopter the option of covering up the prominent ‘TRUMP’ insignia on the Sikorsky’s tail boom. As Stubbs told me: “In America, Trump is a brand. Over here, it’s the focus of people’s anger”

Jonny Stage, who runs a high-end VIP tourism firm (£25k pp in some cases) also flew without the TRUMP logo when renting the chopper: "We always took the TRUMP name off. If some of my clients had known it was [Trump's] helicopter, they’d probably have chosen another chopper"

AFAIK this is the first time Trump’s name has been taken off one of his own helicopters, but the removal of the TRUMP brand is a trend that’s been evident in the US. This great @washingtonpost piece by @Fahrenthold from February gives some context: washingtonpost.com/politics/for-t…

In light of all this, it seems Trump Turnberry and/or the Trump Org took the decision to end the Sikorsky's stay in Scotland. @UK_CAA records show it has been deregistered in the UK and transferred back to the US. Here's the paperwork (I love paperwork):

Stubbs confirmed this, to me and it’s further corroborated by Trump’s 2019 @OfficeGovEthics filings. They show DT Connect Europe Ltd, the Trump Org’s obscure UK charter firm, is valued at as little as $1,000, reflecting its bank account holding. The asset (the chopper) is gone.

All that corroboration proved immaterial when tonight, hours after my deadline, the Trump Org confirmed to me the helicopter’s been moved to the US. The reason, it claims, is that “the travel of the first family has changed substantially in the past three years.”

In light of that explanation, I'd politely suggest the Trump Org has a discreet word with its webmasters about the Sikorsky export. Its website still claims the S-76B is based in Scotland:

Im waiting for the latest accounts to drop for the snappily named DT Connect Europe Ltd, an entity that’s overlooked even by seasoned Trump watchers. Its latest accounts (thru Dec '17) show its profit/loss reserves stand at a negative of £967,000. Expect that fig to change.

All in all, the helicopter move hardly dovetails with Trump’s plans to fly wealthy golfers between his resorts in Scotland and Ireland. One v well placed source at Turnberry told me Trump even wanted to build a dedicated heliport at the resort, so enthused was he by the idea.

Looking thru notes and cuts, as long ago as 2017, staff at Turnberry told me uptake of the helicopter charter service was “muted,” and that Trump’s firm had renewed its focus on attracting domestic customers in UK/RoI instead of wealthy int jetsetters. A sign of things to come.

I’m digging deep for more on this story. In the meantime, here’s four minor, and one major observation about this development, and Trump’s love of helicopters. Oh aye, he's mad for the choppers ...

1) As is clear by his ownership of 3 of their aircraft, Trump’s a Sikorsky fan. The manufacturers, Lockheed Martin, said in July the firm will keep its Pennsylvania plant open after meeting Trump, who called LM “one of the USA's truly great companies!" edition.cnn.com/2019/07/11/bus…

2) For aviation buffs and those intrigued by the totems Trump wields to project status and prestige, his S-76Bs have uniform specs thanks to Eric Roth, a NY-based aircraft interior designer. The details include 24-carat gold plated seatbelts. An apposite hashtag would be #bling

3) If you missed out on the chance to charter Trump’s Sikorsky, fear not. You can still buy a S-76B baseball cap from the @TrumpStore for $36 (£29). “Be propelled into new heights of style” the blurb promises, adding: “You’ll feel like a Captain in your own right”

4) Trump Org refers to its 3 resorts in UK/RoI as the ‘Trump Triangle - in truth it’s more of a straight line through Co Claire, Ayrshire and Aberdeenshire, but Trump’s marketing team use Reuleaux triangles in their marketing materials. Compare these two images #geometrygeek

5) All of which leaves one mystery I need help with. Where’s Trump’s Sikorsky S-76B now? The UK reg was G-TRMP,  its reserved US reg is N76TE. The serial no is 760362. Send me tips on this & other Trump info. DMs open. Encrypted email [e-mail]. Thanks for reading.

A few quick updates on my @TheScotsman story on the interesting clientele who chartered Trump’s Sikorsky helicopter during its time in the UK, and the Trump Organisation’s decision to bring it back to the US …

@TheScotsman I’m learning about more of the Trump Organisation’s customers who flew in the Sikorsky S-76B. They include Dior, the fashion house, who like several other clients, chose to fly not with the TRUMP branding, but their own bespoke logo. Do you know more? DM/email me.

@TheScotsman I’ve also been mulling over the Trump Org’s response, which says the helicopter was sent back to the US in light of how “the travel of the first family has changed substantially in the past 3 years.” So, who paid for the export costs? I’ve asked Trump Org, White House & USAF.

@TheScotsman But I'm still none the wiser as to the whereabouts of Trump’s Sikorsky S-76B now, and what it's being used for. Its reserved US FAA reg is N76TE, the serial no is 760362. If you see it, or know about it, my DMs open. Encrypted email [e-mail]