Kid Rock reportedly got a ride in one of America’s most powerful military helicopters, and critics are already asking the obvious question: Who paid for this?
The pro-Trump rocker allegedly flew in the gunner’s seat of an AH-64 Apache helicopter on Monday morning during a trip involving Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The flight reportedly took off from Fort Belvoir, just outside Washington, D.C. Kid Rock, whose real name is Robert James Ritchie, was said to have arrived there on his private jet.
The detail that has people heated is simple. The AH-64 Apache is not some casual sightseeing aircraft. It is a U.S. military attack helicopter, usually equipped with a 30mm nose-mounted cannon and anti-tank missiles. It reportedly costs thousands of dollars per hour to operate.
Gavin Newsom Called Out The Flight
California Gov. Gavin Newsom was quick to slam the reported ride. “Why are taxpayers paying to fly Kid Rock around on $100 million helicopters?” he said. That line spread fast because it captured the core criticism. Kid Rock is not a military official. He is not a defense contractor. He is a celebrity and a loud Trump supporter.
The White House, the Department of Defense, and Kid Rock’s agent had not immediately responded to questions about who paid for the reported flight or why it happened.
Drop Site News described the ride as an “incentive flight.” Grim also noted that Apache helicopters are not typically stationed at Fort Belvoir, raising more questions about where the aircraft came from.
The Ride Follows Another Apache Controversy
The reported helicopter ride comes after a separate controversy involving Kid Rock and military pilots.
In March, a group of helicopter pilots were suspended after they reportedly hovered near Kid Rock’s Nashville-area home in what appeared to be a tribute. In an Instagram video posted by his manager Cory Gierman, Kid Rock called the flyby a “helicopter performance” and said it was 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,” he said.
Hegseth later stepped in and announced that the pilots’ suspensions had been lifted. “Suspension LIFTED. No punishment. No investigation. Carry on, patriots. ??” he wrote.
Online Critics Were Not Impressed
The new report brought another wave of criticism online.
“What a waste of tax payer money,” one person wrote.
Another asked, “Why are they treating this washed up singer as royalty???? It really is embarrassing.”
A third took a shot at Kid Rock’s Freedom Tour, writing, “Donating tickets is the only way Kid Rock can get anyone to attend.”
The optics are messy. Kid Rock has built much of his modern brand around patriotism, Trump politics, and working-class imagery. Flying shotgun in an Army attack helicopter with questions hanging over taxpayer costs is exactly the kind of visual that critics will not let slide.
For supporters, it may look like a patriotic celebrity moment. For everyone else, it looks like an expensive ride in military hardware with very few clear answers.
