Marines attended a Marine Helicopter Squadron One recruiting brief at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, Jan. 14, 2016.

HMX-1 is responsible for direct helicopter support of the White House, which includes supporting the president, vice president, secretary of defense, secretary of the Navy, commandant of the Marine Corps and all visiting heads of state in the Washington, D.C., area.

“We are broken down into two elements,” said Gunnery Sgt. Victor Velez, manpower chief with HMX-1. “There’s the white side which is our biggest mission and is the executive transportation of the president of the United States. Then there’s the green side which is the executive support. Their mission is to support the equipment as well as personnel like the press and secret service and move them around in a moment’s notice.”

The white side consists of VH-3D Sea King and VH-60N White Hawk helicopters and, the green side consists of the MV-22B Osprey. HMX-1 aircraft from both the white and green sides support presidential missions.

“The brief provided information about the qualifications needed and what could disqualify Marines from joining HMX-1,” said Cpl. Kenneth Einwalter, data network specialist with Marine Wing Support Squadron 171. “This would be a great opportunity to further our service to our country.”

The brief afforded HMX-1 Marines the opportunity to provide information and answer questions about the career opportunities available to pilots, crew chiefs, aircraft maintainers and many other Marines at HMX-1.

“We have 59 different military occupational specialties at the squadron,” said Velez. “I would like to make sure that Marines check the HMX-1 website to see if an MOS is available and to always prescreen in order to see if the MOS is available to them.”

In order to become a part of HMX-1, Marines must reach the basic requirements which include U.S. citizenship, a high degree of maturity, discretion and trustworthiness, unquestionable loyalty to the United States, a satisfactory past and present duty performance, and time on station requirements.

“This is a great opportunity for Marines to come to HMX-1,” said Gunnery Sgt. Jimmy Ensley, maintenance control chief with HMX-1. “You get a top secret clearance, and you are also provided the opportunity to conduct a lot of presidential missions and travel the world.”