Editing Boeing AH-64 Apache (section)

===Into production===
[[File:YAH-64, 1982-03-18.jpg|thumb|left|A YAH-64A prototype, 1982]]

In 1981, three pre-production AH-64As were handed over to the U.S. Army for Operational Test II. The Army testing was successful, but afterward it was decided to upgrade to the more powerful [[General Electric T700|T700-GE-701]] version of engine, rated at {{convert|1690|shp|abbr=on|lk=on}}. The AH-64 was named the ''Apache'' in late 1981, after the [[Apache]] tribe, following the tradition of naming Army helicopters after Native American tribes. It was approved for full-scale production in 1982.<ref name="Bishop_p8-9">Bishop 2005, pp. 8–9.</ref> In 1983, the first production helicopter was rolled out at Hughes Helicopter's facility at [[Mesa, Arizona]]. Hughes Helicopters was purchased by [[McDonnell Douglas]] for $470 million in 1984 ({{Inflation|US|470000000|1984|fmt=eq|r=-6}}).<ref name=Donald_p119>Donald 2004, p. 119.</ref> The helicopter unit later became part of The Boeing Company with the merger of [[Boeing]] and McDonnell Douglas in August 1997.<ref name=Boe_MDC_merge>{{cite web |url=http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/special/pd125.nsf/0/0EC17704770E83BF86256E04006C5943?OpenDocument |title=McDonnell-Boeing Merger |website=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |first=Cynthia |last=Wilson |author2=Dale Singer |date=13 January 2004}}{{dead link|date=August 2017|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> In 1986, the incremental or flyaway cost for the AH-64A was $7M and the average unit cost was approximately $13.9M based on total costs.<ref name=Donald_p119/>

A 1985 Department of Defense engineering analysis by the inspector general's office reported that significant design deficiencies still needed to be addressed by the contractor. The Army project manager Col. [[William H. Forster]] published a list of 101 action items. In 1986, the four 22-foot-long main rotor blades, each made from steel and composite material glued together to maximize strength and minimize weight by the Composite Structures Division of Alcoa Composites, were added to the list. The steel-composite rotors could not meet the Army specification for a life of 1500 flight hours, and needed replacement after just 146 hours. After six changes to the design, the rotor blade life was extended to 1400 hours by early 1991.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1991/02/20/temperamental-helicopter-joins-battle/7070af42-9f1a-4e45-95e0-b0d0d20c3d50/ |title=Temperamental Helicopter Joins Battle |first=Charles R. |last=Babcock |date=20 February 1991 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=14 October 2021}}</ref>

As of 2024, the AH-64E is being produced at an economical rate of 82 aircraft a year. Boeing states that the minimum sustainment rate for the aircraft is 48 per year while current tooling and space allows for up to 98 aircraft to be manufactured per year. The U.S. Army states that with additional investment and labor, production could be raised to 144 aircraft per year.<ref name="Volume 1" />