Document and Entity Information - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2016	Jan. 01, 2017	Jun. 30, 2016
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2016
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Registrant Name	Curtiss Wright Corporation
Entity Central Index Key	0000026324
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		44,528,398
Entity Public Float			$ 3,300,000,000
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2016
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Trading Symbol	cw