Warsaw and GE Aerospace have agreed to establish depot-level support for the F404-GE-102 engines powering the Polish Air Force’s KAI FA-50 Golden Eagle light supersonic combat aircraft fleet.
The industrial strategy is planned to integrate comprehensive maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) work for the propulsion system in collaboration with the NATO country’s state aerospace company Wojskowe Zakłady Lotnicze (WZL-2).
The teaming will support Poland’s continuing adoption of the FA-50s, which is expected to reach a total of 48 airframes by early 2029.
To date, 12 of the jets have been delivered as part of the program.
Jakub Gazda, CEO of WZL-2, emphasized that the cooperation reinforces Warsaw’s effort to substantiate “operational independence” as defense requirements evolve.
“Our partnership with GE Aerospace offers us the opportunity to develop our expertise in servicing F404-GE-102 engines,” Gazda stated.
“We want to ensure that increasingly advanced maintenance capabilities for equipment used by the Polish Armed Forces are developed and maintained domestically.”
Enhancing Regional Position
GE noted that the arrangement also expands the firm’s more than three decades of European reach in Poland, with approximately 2,300 specialists stationed throughout five domestic sites.
“Establishing engine support within Poland is critically important to ensure readiness and availability for our military customer,” said Scott Keating, executive regional general manager for Europe at GE Aerospace.
“We look forward to working with WZL-2, a well-respected engine MRO provider in Poland, to determine how we can best serve Poland’s needs on the F404 engines to offer this capability in country.”
The F404-GE-102
GE’s F404-GE-102 technology enables the FA-50 to move at Mach 1.5 (1,151 miles/1,852 kilometers per hour), fly at 48,000 feet (14,630 meters), and conduct operations of up to 1,000 nautical miles (1,151 miles/1,852 kilometers).
The company said that over 4,000 units of the F404 engine family have been distributed to international customers since its introduction.
The systems installed in the global fleet have already exceeded 13 million flight hours, including about 300 engines fitted into the existing FA-50 as well as its sister airframes, the T-50 and TA-50.
