On Wednesday, January 8, 2025, the American company GE Aerospace (a subsidiary of General Electric) announced that it had been commissioned to produce 210 T700-GE-701D turboshaft engines for the future fleet of 96 Boeing AH-64E Apache Guardian attack helicopters for Poland.
Photo: GE Aerospace
“This T700 engine is the engine of choice for medium-sized helicopters with its exceptional performance, reliability, and durability,” said Amy Gowder, President and CEO of Defense & Systems at GE Aerospace. “This order strengthens our relationship with Poland and expands the Polish Armed Forces’ GE Aerospace-powered fleet, which includes F404-powered FA-50 fighter jets, T700-powered Sikorsky S-70i Black Hawks, and CT7-powered Leonardo AW149 and AW101 helicopters.”
The engines in question, with a maximum power output of 2,000 HP/1,491 kW, will power the 96 AH-64E helicopters ordered on August 13, 2024, under a contract worth approximately 10 billion USD (39.17 billion PLN net/48.18 billion PLN gross).
The engine order follows a cooperation agreement under an offset program, signed on August 5, 2024, between General Electric and the Ministry of National Defense. Under this agreement, Military Aviation Works No. 1 in Dęblin (Wojskowe Zakłady Lotnicze Nr 1, WLZ-1) will provide licensed support for maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) of T700-701D turboshaft engines used in AH-64E Apache Guardians, CT7-2E1 engines in AW149 helicopters, and CT7-8E engines in AW101 helicopters. As part of this agreement, there will be a transfer of technology and know-how, enabling the facility to perform maintenance and repair tasks for these engines up to and including level D.
The Military University of Technology in Warsaw (Wojskowa Akademia Techniczna, WAT) will oversee training programs, including those focused on T700/CT7 engines, for Polish technicians, military personnel, and WZL-1 employees who will support the helicopter fleet. Additionally, it will prepare future engineering staff for the Polish Armed Forces as part of the WAT Engine Maintenance Training Center. The university will also acquire equipment to support the development of an advanced composite structures laboratory.
The cooperation agreement between GE Aerospace, WZL-1, and WAT will sustain valuable jobs in Poland and introduce new areas of technology for engine support, repair, and maintenance, as well as training and technical assistance for the defense sector’s industrial base. This will enable Polish industry to support the Polish Armed Forces in maintaining the Apache fleet. Through these partnerships, the Ministry of National Defense will have full domestic infrastructure and training capabilities in this field, ensuring supply chain security for all platforms powered by the T700/CT7 engine line. The agreement also paves the way for future partnerships in Poland involving GE Aerospace combat engines, such as the F110, F414, and F404.
The T700/CT7 family of turboshaft and turboprop engines powers 15 types of military and civilian helicopters, as well as fixed-wing aircraft, serving over 130 customers in more than 50 countries. Over 25,000 T700/CT7 engines have been delivered, collectively logging more than 130 million flight hours. The T700/CT7 design has proven its reliability in the most challenging conditions, amassing millions of flight hours in hot combat zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan. In Europe, more than 1,300 T700/CT7 engines have been delivered or ordered for 20 European military and public service customers.
The engines will be built and delivered under a contract with the U.S. Army Contracting Command (ACC) as part of the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program facilitated by the U.S. Department of Defense. On June 12, 2024, the U.S. Army awarded GE Aerospace an IDIQ (Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity) contract valued at 1,128,042,359 USD (4.686 billion PLN) to continue production of up to 950 T700 engines for the U.S. armed forces, public services, and foreign customers, with a completion deadline of June 13, 2029.