Fresh out of one scandal involving an AH-64 Apache helicopter gunship, Kid Rock has been treated to a personal "joyride" from the 'secretary of war' himself.
The pro-Trump rock star got to fly in the gunner's seat of one of America's deadliest military machines along with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday afternoon, Pentagon officials confirmed.
The two men each rode separate choppers, flying from Fort Belvoir on the outskirts of Washington D.C. It's not yet clear who paid for the trip — or whether American taxpayers footed the bill.
"Joined my friend Kid Rock — and some of our great U.S. Army Apache pilots — for a ride this morning," said Hegseth on X after the news broke, calling him “a patriot and a huge supporter of our troops.”
It comes after Hegseth personally intervened to lift the suspensions of a group of helicopter pilots who were pulled from duty after hovering beside the MAGA musician’s Nashville-area home in an apparent tribute on March 28.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the flights supported a “community relations event” for a White House-led initiative, called Freedom 250, that is coordinating events for America’s 250th anniversary commemoration.
“Robert ‘Kid Rock’ Ritchie participated in multiple troop touches with service members and filmed videos for Memorial Day, America’s 250th birthday, and for his Freedom 250 tour,” Parnell said in a statement.
The White House, the Department of Defense, and Kid Rock's agent did not respond to questions fromThe Independent about who paid for the flight.
Freedom 250 is a public-private partnership that has previously stirred controversy for reportedly offering access to President Donald Trump to private donors who give over $1 million.
The AH-64 Apache is the U.S. military's main attack helicopter, typically armed with a powerful 30mm nose-mounted auto-cannon and anti-tank missiles. Each one costs an estimated tens of millions of dollars to build, and the Army’s version reportedly costs around $7,000 per hour to operate.
Army aviators in March flew the same type of helicopters near the home of the musician, who is an outspoken supporter of President Trump.
The choppers also flew over a “No Kings” protest against the Trump administration in Nashville, prompting questions about flight safety and whether either maneuver was authorized.
Monday's flight, which was first reported by Ryan Grim of the non-profit investigative outlet Drop Site News, took off shortly after 1 p.m. local time and lasted about 10 minutes, involving a few loops over the base.
Kid Rock flew to the base in his private jet from Nashville in the morning and then flew right back afterwards, according to public flight tracking data.
Democrats were unimpressed by the stunt. California’s outspoken Governor Gavin Newsom said: “Why are taxpayers paying to fly Kid Rock around on $100 million helicopters?”
In an Instagram video posted by Kid Rock's manager Cory Gierman earlier this month, Rock called the March flyby a "helicopter performance" given to him as a "gift" and a "tribute".
"I stood by the swimming pool to return the gesture, and I filmed it and I posted it online because I wanted to tell those hypocrites that this is what America should look like," claimed the longtime Trump supporter.
Afterwards, Hegseth announced: "Suspension LIFTED. No punishment. No investigation. Carry on, patriots. 🇺🇸"
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