GE, US Army conduct PDR for T901 improved turbine engine

GE Aviation hosted the U.S. Army for the successful Preliminary Design Review (PDR) of the T901-GE-900 engine in early March. The T901 is GE Aviation's engine for the Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP), the U.S. Army's undertaking to re-engine its Boeing AH-64 Apache and Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters. The PDR is a major milestone within the Technology Maturation and Risk Reduction (TMRR) contract, a $102 million, 24-month contract the Army awarded GE in September 2016.

The Army is in the process of down-selecting to one engine manufacturer for the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase by the end of 2018. The U.S. Army Contracting Command (ACC), based at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, released its request for proposals for the EMD last November. GE Aviation submitted the first phase of the proposal in February and is currently preparing the second and final phase of its proposal based on the engine configuration reviewed at the PDR.

GE Aviation successfully completed a fit test with the Army this past December using a full-scale engine mockup. It demonstrated that the T901 engine integrates with the Apache and Black Hawk airframes. GE's experience in powering these aircraft missions with the T700 engine throughout the past four decades has informed its development of the T901; it positions the Army and GE to make a smooth transition from the T700 to the T901.

GE has invested more than $9 billion in maturing commercial technologies applicable to the T901 and more than $300 million to develop and test turboshaft-specific technologies ahead of the PDR. GE funded and successfully completed testing a T901 prototype engine, as well as component tests.

The T901 incorporates additive manufacturing, 3D aerodynamic design tools, ceramic matrix composites (CMCs), advanced cooling technologies, and sand tolerant technologies. GE has spent decades developing and maturing these technologies in its commercial and military engines businesses.

GE's T901 turboshaft design, manufacturing, assembly, and testing will be supported by the following site locations: Lynn, Massachusetts; Huntsville, Alabama; Newark, Delaware; Jacksonville, Florida; Loves Park, Illinois; Madisonville, Kentucky; Muskegon, Michigan; Hookset, New Hampshire; Asheville, North Carolina; West Chester and Evendale, Ohio; and Rutland, Vermont.