Falconry
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Posted Date: 19/05/2008
Issue: Executive & VIP Aviation International June 2008
Publication: Executive & VIP Aviation International
For the third consecutive year, Dassault Aviation has set a record for Falcon business jet sales. In 2007, the French aircraft OEM achieved 212 firm orders placed worldwide. Dassault Aviation’s 2007 consolidated sales reached €4.08 billion with Falcon business jets accounting for 57% of the total. In fact, Dassault delivered an impressive 70 Falcon business jets into service last year.
The family of Falcon jets currently in production by Dassault Aviation includes the tri-jets – the Falcon 900DX, 900EX and the 7X – as well as the twin-engined Falcon 2000DX and the new 2000LX.
The Falcon 2000LX will replace the Falcon 2000EX EASy from 2010. The Falcon 2000LX is based on the popular 2000EX, but the new aircraft will feature a range of 4,000nm at Mach .80 and a climb speed to 41,000ft of just 18 minutes. The advanced winglet design by Aviation Partners on the Falcon 2000LX reduces drag by 5%, offering corresponding range and efficiency improvements over the 2000EX. National Air Service of Saudi Arabia has signed an agreement for 20 Falcon 2000LXs; this is one of the largest purchases of business jets in the Middle East region to date.
“The winglet application on the Falcon 2000EX aircraft was quite difficult because the wing was already very optimised,” comments Olivier Villa, Senior Vice President Civil Aircraft at Dassault Aviation. “We shared the work, with Aviation Partners bringing the aerodynamic expertise and Dassault Aviation optimising the wing reinforcement.”
Villa explains that the bigger the winglets, the greater the efficiency delivered by the innovation; but large winglets add a lot of stress to the structure. This means that a successful winglet application demands a compromise between aerodynamics and structural integrity.
In fact NetJets Europe is upgrading its fleet of Falcon 2000EX EASy aircraft to Falcon 2000LXs by retrofitting winglets. When asked whether this is all about fuel efficiency and performance, Villa responds: “There is a 5% range improvement as well as a 5% improvement in fuel consumption – although more can be achieved, depending upon the type of cruise performed at which Mach number. We talk about a 5% improvement, knowing that it can be as high as 7%.” The winglet retrofit is performed within the Dassault Falcon Authorized Service Network during a C check. The retrofitted aircraft achieves the same level of performance and structural integrity as a production Falcon 2000LX.
Also boasting new technology is the Falcon 2000DX. “This aircraft brings to the market the Falcon 2000EX proposition with Pratt engines and also the EASy cockpit,” comments Villa.
This 3,250nm aircraft reached several milestones in 2007. It first flew from Dassault’s facility in Bordeaux-Merignac in June 2007 and received approval from both the EASA and the FAA in September and October respectively. The first aircraft is scheduled to enter into service shortly.
Range and speed
“The Falcon 7X is all about speed and range,” comments Villa. “At the top of our family of Falcons is the Falcon 900EX with a range of 4,500nm and we had a number of customers requesting longer range in order, for example, to fly from Paris to the west coast of the US. This brought about the Falcon 7X. We decided the range should be 5,700nm in order to cover most of the city pairs that our customers needed to travel. Later on, we decided to increase the Falcon 7X’s range to close to 6,000nm in order to provide more comfort – that is to achieve the city pairs in any kind of weather and with any load.”
Villa explains that with range comes longer flight hours and the desire for enhanced comfort in the cabin. “We decided to increase the cabin volume by about 20%,” remarks Villa. “We increased the speed of the aircraft, giving it a speed of Mach .9 so that you can achieve Mach .85 comfortably.” Sound-proofing, air conditioning and cabin pressurisation have all been addressed for the Falcon 7X.
“We wanted this aircraft to benefit from all the technology that we could put in it,” comments Villla. “We decided to make it the first business jet with a digital flight control system. This brings enhanced safety, reduced pilot workload and increased comfort.” The flight control system was developed in house, drawing on expertise derived from military aircraft design.
A digital design system is being used to control production of the Falcon 7X. “The software and the processes we use are the same for military and civil products,” he explains. “The system is something that was developed year upon year since the 1980s.”
One of the highlights of 2007 occurred on April 27 when the Falcon 7X received simultaneous certification from both EASA and the FAA. The 5,950nm Falcon 7X entered into service on June 14, 2007.
Making up the triumvirate of tri-jets in Dassault Aviation’s stable are the Falcon 900DX and Falcon 900EX EASy aircraft. The Falcon 900 family reached an impressive milestone when, in November 2007, the 400th Falcon 900 was delivered into service when CITIC took delivery of a Falcon 900DX. Launched in 1981, the first flight of the Falcon 900 took place in 1984. Every Falcon 900 ever built is still in operation today.
Super mid sized
At the Paris Air Show 2007, Dassault Aviation announced an engine partnership with Rolls-Royce for its yet to be named future Super Mid-Sized Falcon (SMS). Five engine options were thoroughly studied and analysed before choosing the all new engine that will power the new SMS.
“When we select an engine manufacturer, at the end of the negotiating process, when we know the main characteristics of the engine, the commercial arrangements and the general plans for support, then we continue to develop the aircraft with the engine manufacturer, but I would call it a ‘co-development’ between the aircraft manufacturer and the engine manufacturer,” explains Villa.
“If you want the aircraft and engines to be very efficient, you have to work hand in hand to develop the shape of the aircraft and engines. The structural parts have to be optimised and the systems have to be designed in coordination with the engine characteristics. It’s a team effort,” he insists.
Technology leap
The provision of services to Falcon operators took a big step forward in 2007 with the opening of a new Falcon Technical Centre in St Cloud, France. The facility offers cutting edge communications systems which provide comprehensive customer solutions and delivers real-time fleet and service information to technical support staff.
“The primary purpose is to improve support to operators. They have always had good contact with our organisation through a team of very dedicated individuals. That works very well but in some cases the operator may need a very high level of technical expertise while in a remote location,” says Villa. When this happens, the usual member of the customer support team may not have the right kind of technical knowledge to support this AOG situation which is where the Technical Centre comes into its own.
“At the Technical Centre, the people receiving the calls can gain immediate access to all the technical data. This brand new information system makes sure that we can respond very quickly,” he says.
Apart from operator support, Dassault Aviation is a member of the European Clean Sky programme along with other manufacturers such as Airbus and Snecma. When asked what is the purpose of this participation, Villa responds: “The purpose is to make efficient aircraft even more efficient. We are already proud of the efficiency of our aircraft but it is clear that we always need to make progress. Clean Sky is a huge initiative, bringing together a lot of different European companies. Each company brings its own expertise.”
Villa is committed to a collaborative approach. “The bigger gains in efficiency are achieved when people work together,” he says.
Making markets
What is Dassault Aviation’s perception of the market and has it met Villa’s expectations?
“The market has been great over the last few years; even better than we anticipated. The market in North America has been stable with traditional and reasonable growth. We have also seen some strong growth in South America. What has been surprising has been the growth of the market in Europe (as far as Moscow), India and the Middle East. All these countries have filled our order book very quickly. In south-east Asia the volumes are not very high but we see things moving and a lot of potential there,” remarks Villa.
“In terms of production, we will have doubled the production rate in three years. We have to be careful because this market is subject to sudden ups and downs,” comments Villa.
So what does this mean in terms of lead times? “If you come to us to order a Falcon 7X – and I hope you will – the next available production slot is 2014,” he remarks.
Completion capability keeps growing
All three Dassault owned service centres announced expansion or additional staffing in 2007. Dassault’s Little Rock Facility announced a project that will double the service square footage by the end of 2008 and add 100 positions over the next three years. The Wilmington Service Centre announced an additional 30 maintenance and technical personnel will be added by the middle of 2008. Dassault Falcon Service in Le Bourget also broke ground on an expansion that will expand the facility by 46,300ft2 by September 2008 and will add an additional six Falcon 900s or four Falcon 7Xs, to the existing 18 slots.
Completion capacity increased dramatically in 2007 and will further increase in 2008. In June, Dassault announced, with Governor Mike Beebe, that the Little Rock Completion Centre will add 116,000ft2 of production space by the end of 2008. In August, Governor Ruth Miner of Delaware announced Dassault Falcon Jet-Wilmington will begin limited completions on Falcon 2000 family for NetJets. About 12 aircraft will be completed in Wilmington in 2008. Dassault Falcon is responsible for selling and supporting Falcon business jets throughout the world. It is part of Dassault Aviation.
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