TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Students at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute got a surprise on Tuesday. A Marine Corps helicopter visited the campus.

It was brought in by the school’s ROTC program as a way of encouraging all students to recognize the role the military plays in their lives.

“One, is to let the ROTC students here at Rensselaer experience the helicopter firsthand. Two, is to really just show the American public the military is all around us,” RPI Commanding Officer ROTC Unit Dave Latta said. “The Navy and the Marine Corps are right here at home, and every day, here at Rensselaer and places around the country, young men and women are doing great things for our country’s armed forces.”

The helicopter is the largest one in the U.S. military’s fleet.