The long running Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP) competition has come to a close with incumbent GE Aviation claiming victory over a Honeywell/Pratt & Whitney team. The Army selected GE Aviation as the winner of the ITEP competition awarding an initial $517 million contract to complete engineering and manufacturing development work on its T901-GE-900 engine.
The company beat a rival bid from a team of Honeywell and Pratt & Whitney, working as the Advanced Turbine Engine Company (ATEC). ATEC developed its HPW3000 engine for this effort.
This U.S. Army program sought a drop-in replacement engine for Boeing AH-64 Apaches and Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks that would be smaller, cheaper, and more powerful. The US Army wants an engine that offers 50 percent more power, 25 percent lower fuel burn, and a 20 percent longer life. A 20-35 percent cut in maintenance and production costs is another target.
In addition to the re-engine requirements, the new engine will likely be utilized in the Future Vertical Lift program, which aims to develop a next generation reconnaissance helicopter.
GE has been the incumbent manufacturer of engines for the Apache and Blackhawk helicopters with its T700.
