Did Donald Trump’s helicopter ruin Queen Elizabeth’s lawn at Buckingham Palace?
Queen Elizabeth was reportedly furious after the US president’s chopper scorched the royal lawn – twice in a single day
President Donald Trump is known for making an entrance everywhere he goes – but he left the wrong impression when his helicopter scorched the queen’s lawn at Buckingham Palace, according to a new report in The Sunday Times.
In the first week of June, Trump travelled to the UK for an official state visit to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day, on June 6, 2019.
Trump's presidential helicopter, Marine One, reportedly burnt the grass after landing at Buckingham Palace two times in the same day.
The Queen then complained about the damage to the grass to another state leader, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, a source close to Morrison told The Sunday Times.
The source said that when Morrison, who also travelled to the UK for the D-Day anniversary celebrations, arrived in London, he “went straight to the palace to see the queen, who led him out to the gardens and said: ‘Come and look at my lawn. It’s ruined.’”
Come and look at my lawn. It’s ruined
The Sunday Times reported that the lawn outside Buckingham Palace is “the centrepiece of the queen's annual garden parties” and that the helicopter left both “scorch marks” and divots in the grass when it landed.
The outlet also said that the queen has reportedly taken previous measures to protect her lawns from helicopter damage, including denying a request from former President Barack Obama to land six helicopters on the lawn of Windsor Castle in 2016.
Trump has visited England twice during his presidency, and appears to greatly admire the queen.