This Is Our First Look At A CH-47 Chinook With Super Powerful T408 Engines
The new engines are larger and are encased in square nacelles. The extra power could allow the Chinook to better compete with Sikorsky's CH-53K.
By Joseph TrevithickNovember 13, 2019
A picture has emerged of a Boeing CH-47 Chinook helicopter fitted with a pair of powerful General Electric T408 engines. The company had said in May that it was preparing to flight test a Chinook equipped with these engines, which are the same ones found on Sikorsky's troubled, but immensely powerful CH-53K King Stallion.
The official Twitter account for the U.S. Army's Combat Capabilities Development Command's Aviation and Missile Center, which is situated at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, posted a shot of the rear of the modified helicopter, which has the tail number 067, on the social media site on Nov. 12, 2019. The Tweet also included a view of the same helicopter from the front, but taken at a different time when it had no engines installed at all.
Boeing To Flight Test CH-47 With Same Monster Engines Found On Sikorsky's New CH-53KBy Joseph Trevithick Posted in The War Zone
At present, the Army is not actively pursuing this re-engine effort for its own Chinooks as part of the larger Block II upgrade program. However, the Tweet said that Aviation and Missile Center and Boeing have partnered together to test the engine installation. It is not clear if this is occurring under a traditional research and development contract or as part of some other form of a partnered agreement, such as a cooperative research and development agreement, or CRADA.
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/31013/this-is-our-first-look-at-a-ch-47-chinook-with-super-powerful-t408-engines
