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By Garrett Reim2021-05-03T21:54:00+01:00
The US Army believes it is feasible to upgrade its fleet of Boeing CH-47 Chinooks with the GE Aviation T408 turboshaft engine.
That is the service’s conclusion after seven months of flight testing the more powerful engine on the cargo helicopter. The US Army is scheduled to conduct the last flight demonstration of the CH-47 with the T408 on 26 May at Fort Eustis in Virginia, Roger Kuykendall, project manager of advanced turbine engines for the US Army, said on 30 April.
Source: US Army
Boeing CH-47 being tested with GE T408 turboshaft
The US Army operates 510 examples of the CH-47 cargo helicopter, according to Cirium fleets data. Those helicopters are powered by two Honeywell T55 turboshafts, each producing 4,800hp (3,600kW) of power.