Joint Venture (Unamortized Deferred Revenue from JV) (Details) - Woodward and General Electric Joint Venture [Member] - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Mar. 31, 2020	Sep. 30, 2019
Schedule of Equity Method Investments [Line Items]
Accrued liabilities	$ 4,712	$ 8,317
Other liabilities	$ 235,558	$ 230,588

The carrying amount as of the balance sheet date of deferred income recorded in connection with the formation of a joint venture which is expected to be recognized within one year or the normal operating cycle, if longer. The Company contributed certain contractual rights and intellectual property to a joint venture for which it had no cost basis. The joint venture partner then paid the Company for its ownership interest in the joint venture. The transaction was not the culmination of an earnings event and therefore the consideration received was recorded as deferred income to be recognized/amortized over the estimated remainig lives of the underlying programs assigned to the joint venture.

No definition available.

Name:	wwd_DeferredIncomeFromJointVentureFormationCurrent
Namespace Prefix:	wwd_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	instant