Poland has officially inducted its first Apache attack helicopters. Three AH-64D Apaches arrived at the 56th Air Base in Inowrocław on 16 June 2025 and the following day an official handover ceremony took place that was attended by Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, Poland’s deputy prime minister and minister of national defence.
The three AH-64Ds are the first of eight such aircraft that are being leased under a USD 300 million contract signed in February 2025. These Apaches will serve as an interim solution while Poland waits to receive the first of 96 latest-model AH-64E Apache Guardian helicopters ordered under USD 10 billion Foreign Military Sales (FMS) contract in August 2024. This acquisition will make Poland the largest Apache operator outside the United States.
Boeing has stated that it expects to begin delivering AH-64Es to Poland in 2028.
During the handover ceremony in Inowrocław, Kosiniak-Kamysz said of the Polish Apache acquisition, “This is not just modernisation; it is a real change in Poland’s position in NATO. We are becoming a key pillar of security in the region.”
The training of Polish Apache aircrew and ground technicians began in the United States in the second half of 2023. The training of these personnel (and the personnel who they, in turn, train), additional US-based training and the leasing of the eight AH-64Ds will pave the way for a more efficient induction of the AH-64Es when they arrive.
