Condensed Consolidated Statements of Earnings (USD $) In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Earnings
Net sales	$ 408,339	$ 407,896
Costs and expenses:
Cost of goods sold	289,573	284,410
Selling, general and administrative expenses	36,418	38,570
Research and development costs	30,018	30,794
Amortization of intangible assets	7,667	8,258
Interest expense	6,456	6,308
Interest income	(68)	(126)
Other (income) expense, net (Note 15)	(262)	(494)
Total costs and expenses	369,802	367,720
Earnings before income taxes	38,537	40,176
Income tax expense	11,169	11,760
Net earnings	$ 27,368	$ 28,416
Earnings per share (Note 3):
Basic earnings per share	$ 0.40	$ 0.41
Diluted earnings per share	$ 0.39	$ 0.40
Weighted Average Common Shares Outstanding (Note 3):
Basic	68,461	68,919
Diluted	69,713	70,393
Cash dividends per share paid to Woodward common stockholders	$ 0.08	$ 0.07