
T55
Turboshaft engine family used by CH-47 Chinook and MH-47 helicopters.
Photo: Hunini via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Program · United States · U.S. Army
Tandem-rotor heavy-lift helicopter for cargo and troop transport.
YCH-1B Chinook prototype first flight
First YHC-1B prototype rolled out
Build B001, serial 59-04982, rolled out. This aircraft subsequently served as a ground-test article and never flew. The source establishes hardware rollout, not the earliest public announcement of the named product.
Earliest documented public appearance: published Chinook rollout photograph
Earliest supported public appearance found in the sources reviewed for this research; not a claim of the first-ever announcement or original unveiling. Earlier evidence may revise this date. The May 1961 Army Aviation issue publishes a named YHC-1B photograph and Boeing Vertol material. The underlying April 28 rollout remains a separate event; its public-access status is not inferred.
Program and variant milestones. Dates show only the precision the sources give.
MH-47 ChinookHeavy-lift helicopter configured for special operations forces.Variants of this program. Their unit costs, quantities and operating costs are in the cost table below.
| Measure | Variant | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Program totals · 3 | |||
| Block II R&D totalShared Block II development scope. | All | $811.2MThen-year $ | CH-47F Block II December 2019 SAR, FY2021 budget Department of Defense · figure Dec 2019 SAR |
| SOCOM procurement portion for six aircraftArmy common-aircraft funding is outside this line. This is not the total acquisition cost of six MH-47Gs. | MH-47 | $149.883MThen-year $ | FY2024 SOCOM procurement budget, MH-47 Service Life Extension USSOCOM · figure FY2024 request |
| R&D program totalA separately identified lifetime development total has not been verified. This is not a zero-cost estimate. | MH-47 | Not established | — |
| Unit costs · 2 | |||
| Block II average procurement / aircraftMixed Block II program includes conventional CH-47F and 73 special-operations MH-47G aircraft. Not a standard Block I flyaway quote. | All | $39.511MThen-year $ | CH-47F Block II December 2019 SAR, FY2021 budget Department of Defense · figure Dec 2019 SAR · +1 more |
| Acquisition / unitA source with a defensible unit scope and dollar basis has not been verified. | MH-47 | Not established | — |
| Quantities · 4 | |||
| CH-47 family cost-study fleetFamily-level historical population, not a current Block II fleet. | All | 362U.S. only | Weapon System Sustainment: GAO-21-101SP, FY2011–2018 operating costs GAO · figure FY2017 |
| Block II acquisition quantityThree development and 539 procurement aircraft; includes 73 MH-47G aircraft. | All | 542U.S. only | CH-47F Block II December 2019 SAR, FY2021 budget Department of Defense · figure Dec 2019 SAR · +1 more |
| Authorized fleet objectiveAuthorized force objective; not verified delivered aircraft or aircraft available for operations. | MH-47 | 69U.S. only | FY2024 SOCOM procurement budget, MH-47 Service Life Extension USSOCOM · figure FY2024 budget |
| U.S. inventoryA dated, variant-specific U.S. fleet count has not been verified. | MH-47 | Not established | — |
| Operating costs · 3 | |||
| Annual O&S / aircraftCH-47 family average; not isolated to Block II. | All | $1.48M / yrConstant FY2018 $ | Weapon System Sustainment: GAO-21-101SP, FY2011–2018 operating costs GAO · figure FY2017 |
| Reimbursement / flight hour1 | All | $8,185 / hrNominal $; Other DoD Component | FY2026 aircraft hourly reimbursement rates, Other DoD Component column DoD Comptroller · figure FY2026 |
| Reimbursement / flight hour1 | MH-47 | $11,255 / hrNominal $; Other DoD Component | FY2026 aircraft hourly reimbursement rates, Other DoD Component column DoD Comptroller · figure FY2026 |
1Published billing rate for use by another DoD component. It is not the fully burdened cost of ownership.
Superseded estimates and prices, each in its original scope and dollar basis.
| Measure | Variant | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit costs · 2 | |||
| Block II average procurement / aircraftPrior program estimate; schedule and scope affect the average. | All | $47.301MThen-year $ | CH-47F Block II December 2019 SAR, FY2021 budget Department of Defense · figure Dec 2018 SAR |
| Block II average procurement / aircraftMixed Block II program includes conventional CH-47F and 73 special-operations MH-47G aircraft. Not a standard Block I flyaway quote. | All | $39.511MThen-year $ | CH-47F Block II December 2019 SAR, FY2021 budget Department of Defense · figure Dec 2019 SAR |
| Operating costs · 5 | |||
| Annual O&S / aircraftCH-47 family historical study. | All | $2.07M / yrConstant FY2018 $ | Weapon System Sustainment: GAO-21-101SP, FY2011–2018 operating costs GAO · figure FY2011 |
| Reimbursement / flight hour1 | All | $7,452 / hrNominal $; Other DoD Component | FY2025 aircraft hourly reimbursement rates, Other DoD Component column DoD Comptroller · figure FY2025 |
| Reimbursement / flight hour1 | All | $8,185 / hrNominal $; Other DoD Component | FY2026 aircraft hourly reimbursement rates, Other DoD Component column DoD Comptroller · figure FY2026 |
| Reimbursement / flight hour1 | MH-47 | $9,272 / hrNominal $; Other DoD Component | FY2025 aircraft hourly reimbursement rates, Other DoD Component column DoD Comptroller · figure FY2025 |
| Reimbursement / flight hour1 | MH-47 | $11,255 / hrNominal $; Other DoD Component | FY2026 aircraft hourly reimbursement rates, Other DoD Component column DoD Comptroller · figure FY2026 |
1Published billing rate for use by another DoD component. It is not the fully burdened cost of ownership.
The selected acquisition report groups conventional and special-operations helicopters in one Block II program. Its average changes with production schedule and mix, so the MH-47G profile separately identifies SOCOM-funded work.
SOCOM’s procurement line funds the special-operations portion while the Army funds common aircraft costs. Dividing this line by six would understate a complete aircraft’s acquisition cost.
Open research: Figures retain the date and scope of the original source. A historical count, cumulative delivery or procurement plan is not today’s mission-capable inventory. A source with a defensible unit scope and dollar basis has not been verified. A dated, variant-specific U.S. fleet count has not been verified. A separately identified lifetime development total has not been verified. This is not a zero-cost estimate.
What the government budgets and pays for this program, from budget justification books, appropriations, acquisition reports and contract announcements. Each figure states its dollar basis. What contractors were obligated is under Contracts.
Obligations are signed USAspending prime-contract actions coded to this program, FY2008 to date, credited to the company that received each action. Obligations are money committed, not company revenue.

Turboshaft engine family used by CH-47 Chinook and MH-47 helicopters.
Photo: Hunini via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Major components and the companies that make them.