Kid Rock and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth both took rides in Army Apache attack helicopters at a base in Virginia on Monday, weeks after earlier similar flights near the entertainer’s Tennessee home drew scrutiny, The Associated Press reported. Hegseth posted photos of himself and Kid Rock at the base on social media late Monday, and the flights were also tracked using publicly available military aviation data.
In his post, Hegseth wrote that “Kid Rock is a patriot and huge supporter of our troops,” and he later shared additional details about the appearance. The Pentagon’s top spokesman, Sean Parnell, said the activity supported what he described as a “community relations event” tied to Freedom 250, a White House-led initiative coordinating events for America’s 250th anniversary commemoration.
Parnell said in a statement that 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 also described the effort as coordinated as part of Freedom 250’s broader outreach.
The Monday flights followed a March controversy involving the same type of helicopter. AP reported that Army aviators flew Apache aircraft near Kid Rock’s home in Tennessee and that the helicopters also flew over a “No Kings” protest against the Trump administration in Nashville, which prompted questions about flight safety and whether either maneuver was authorized.
AP said the Army initially planned to investigate the March flights, which involved crews from the 101st Airborne Division at nearby Fort Campbell, and it suspended the pilots involved. But AP reported that Hegseth intervened quickly and shut down the inquiry. At the time, Army officials said the helicopters were on a training mission when they stopped by Kid Rock’s house and that their presence had nothing to do with the protest.
AP reported that Kid Rock’s jet departed Nashville early Monday and landed at Fort Belvoir in Virginia at 6:30 a.m., based on open source flight data. Shortly after 1 p.m., an Army AH-64 Apache took off from the base, made several loops, and landed about 10 minutes later, according to the Military Air Tracking Alliance, an open source group that tracks military flights.
That helicopter was part of a larger arrival Saturday at the base that included four Apaches and two H-60 Black Hawk helicopters coming from Fort Campbell, AP reported. AP added that Apaches typically have a two-person crew, and while a passenger would replace one crew member, the report said Hegseth and Kid Rock would not have flown in the same aircraft at the same time.
The scrutiny also extended to costs. AP reported that an Army official who spoke on condition of anonymity said an Army Apache helicopter costs about $7,000 per hour to fly. AP said California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office criticized the flights on social media, asking, “Why are taxpayers paying to fly Kid Rock around on $100 million helicopters?”
Other Democrats, including Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado, also posted criticism online. AP reported that Crow, a former Army Ranger, wrote, “Why is Pete Hegseth spending your taxpayer dollars to give Kid Rock ‘joy rides’ on Apache helicopters?” When asked about costs tied to public events involving celebrity flyovers, AP said military officials typically argue that such flights help fulfill regular training requirements and do not represent an additional cost to taxpayers.
The Monday flights concluded with Kid Rock’s jet leaving the Virginia area and returning to Nashville shortly after 3 p.m., according to AP’s description of publicly available flight data. AP also reported that Hegseth posted a photo of Kid Rock speaking to a small group of service members in the Pentagon’s press briefing room earlier in the day.