GE Aviation
The first T901-GE-900 turboshaft engine on a test stand in Lynn, Mass.

GE Starts Testing New Turboshaft Engine

March 24, 2022
The T901-GE-900 will replace the current turboshaft engine powering U.S. Army Apache and Black Hawk helicopters, offering more power and greater fuel efficiency.

GE Aviation has started testing the first T901-GE-900 engine, a turboshaft engine design now in development as the replacement power source for U.S. Army combat helicopters – as well as for the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft. The U.S. Army selected the T901 engine in 2019 for the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase of its Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP), the effort to replace the engines in its fleet of Boeing AH-64 Apaches and Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks.

The T901-GE-900 is a 3,000-shaft horsepower engine design based on the previous T701 engine, with the same aircraft mounting and installation envelope – but incorporating modular elements (additive manufactured and ceramic-matrix composite parts) in common with other GE Aviation engine programs, including the CFM LEAP, GE9X, and GE ATP commercial engines.

GE claims the T901 will deliver 50% more power than the current (T701) engine, and will offer 25% better specific fuel consumption. The new design also will achieve better component durability, reducing engine lifecycle costs, GE reported.

Testing is being carried out at GE Aviation’s Lynn, Mass., operation, where engine test cells have been updated to carry out the multi-year testing phase for the T901 EMD. The test cell upgrades include systems to absorb the increased power and allow no-load operation of the engine, improved instrumentation capability, and upgraded test controls.

T901 EMD engine testing also will be conducted at GE’s Evendale, Ohio, plant and at U.S. government testing centers.

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