The Sikorsky-Development Center in West Palm Beach recently successfully conducted the first test run of the new GE Aerospace T901 Improved Turbine Engines (ITE) in a modified UH-60M Black Hawk.

The first launch and ground runs were carried out by a joint US Army test team (-> current news about the US armed forces) and industry, with Army and Sikorsky pilots at the controls. System functionality, the condition of the T901 ITE engines and the test arrangement were checked to ensure an efficient and smooth test process.

The test demonstrated the startup process of the T901, including idle and flight mode, with the rotor brake released. The entire system functionality was checked – from the engine start sequence to the rotor spin-up just before take-off. The test team checked that all critical systems, including fuel, electrical, hydraulic and flight control systems, worked as expected in the prototype.

Successfully completed ground tests form the basis for further tests, including hovering and flight tests. The first flight of the ITE-equipped Black Hawk is expected to take place this year.

T901-GE-900 engine on Black Hawk - ©Sikorsky
Lighter, more powerful, more efficient and more durable – the T901-GE-900 is set to set new standards. But before it goes into service, a test flight program lasting several years is scheduled.

The General Electric T901-GE-900 ITE engine

The Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP) has been running since 2009, with Pratt & Whitney and General Electric Aerospace as competing suppliers. In 2019, the US Army chose the GE T901 as the winner of the program and awarded a development contract worth around 500 million euros.

The ambitious design and performance goals of the GE T901 include:

  • Over 50 percent more power: around 3,000 shaft horsepower instead of the previous 1,902 shaft horsepower
  • 25 percent lower fuel consumption
  • 65 percent improved power-to-weight ratio: over 10.7 kW per kg
  • 20 percent longer service life: more than 6,000 operating hours and 15,000 cycles
  • 35 percent reduction in production and maintenance costs
  • Engine start without auxiliary power unit, exclusively with battery power

The US Army’s new performance requirements for the T901 Black Hawks are 1,800 meters of hovering flight at an outside temperature of 35 degrees with a payload of 2,300 kilograms instead of the previous 1,219 meters. And a range of 261 kilometers with a payload of 2,300 kilograms instead of the previous 100 kilometers.

Europa modernisiert seine Kampfpanzerflotten

Black Hawk in the armed forces

The Austrian Armed Forces has had nine S-70A (UH-60L) Black Hawk helicopters at its disposal since 2002.

The ongoing modernization programme and the purchase of three additional aircraft will bring the Black Hawk squadron at Leopold Figl Air Base – General Pabisch Air Base in Langenebarn up to twelve aircraft. These should be fit for the next 20 years.

At the end of June 2024, the Austrian Armed Forces ordered twelve more Sikorsky Black Hawk helicopters as part of its ordered twelve more Sikorsky Black Hawk helicopters of the latest UH-60M variant. These are scheduled to replace the AB-212s at Vogler Air Base in Linz-Hörsching from 2028.

Here for further reports about Sikorsky.

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