Dassault Aviation, a leading global provider of business jets, is showcasing its top-of-the-line Falcon 7X at Abu Dhabi Air Expo 2016, one of the Middle East’s leading business aviation shows.

The show, part of the first Abu Dhabi Aviation and Aerospace Week – a biennial event intended to highlight the region’s growing aerospace ambitions – is hosted at Al Bateen Executive Airport.
 
About 70 Falcon business jets are currently based in the Middle East, including 20 examples of the fast selling 7X, 275 of which have come off the assembly line to date. The regional fleet includes all current production aircraft, from the Falcon 7X and Falcon 900LX trijets to the Falcon 2000S/LXS series, as well as previous Falcon models. They will be joined later this year by the three-engined Falcon 8X, Dassault’s new ultra long-range flagship, now nearing the end of its flight test and certification campaign.
 
“The GCC is a vital market for business aviation, with prestigious customers like Saudia Private Aviation, Wallan Aviation and Empire Aviation Group and some of the largest operators of the Falcon 7X,” said Dassault Aviation chairman and CEO Eric Trappier. “I am very pleased that many Middle East customers are already showing such a strong interest in the new Falcon 8X, whose cabin design, operating economy and versatility will make it a perfect fit for their exacting business travel requirements.”  
 
Derived from the Falcon 7X, the 6,450 nm/11,945 km Falcon 8X will offer all the advanced technological features of the popular Falcon 7X, including the industry’s quietest interior and most advanced digital flight controlled system. Set to enter the market in the second half of 2016 and to be delivered to its first customer in the Middle East by the end of the year, it will also feature the longest range of any Falcon along with the most extensive selection of cabin configurations available on any large cabin business jet.
 
The three 8X’s in the flight test programme have nearly completed all certification test requirements. The programme is currently focused on aircraft s/n 03, the first 8X equipped with a fully fitted interior. This spring, s/n 03 will undergo a global test campaign to demonstrate aircraft operational reliability and performance in different flight conditions.
 
“Despite the economic slowdown and lower oil prices affecting the region, we are continuing to witness strong interest in all our Dassault Falcon business jets, in particular new Falcons in development, the 8X and the 5X very wide body twin,” added Trappier.
 
The 5,200 nm/9,630 km Falcon 5X, due to enter service in 2020, will afford the largest cabin cross-section of any business jet and the lowest ownership and operating costs in the 5,000 nm segment.
 
Reinforced Product Support
 
Dassault Falcon continues to grow its product support network in the Gulf and around the world to meet the requirements of its expanding regional Falcon fleet.
 
The company operates an Authorized Service Center, spares distribution center and regional sales office in Dubai, UAE and an Authorized Service Center and technical office in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The Dubai warehouse stocks more than $2 million worth of inventory, primarily for the Falcon 7X, the Falcon 900LX long range trijet and the Falcon 2000 series.
 
Dassault Falcon Service, Dassault’s company-owned service affiliate, recently broke ground on a five-bay maintenance, overhaul and repair facility in Bordeaux, France. Set to open in October of this year, this facility will provide expanded maintenance and retrofit capacity for the 7X, 8X, 5X and other top end models.
 
Customers in the region can also rely on Falcon Response, Dassault’s comprehensive new AOG (Aircraft On Ground) support service, designed to speed spare parts, repair tools and GoTeam specialists around the globe 24/7 in the event of an aircraft on ground situation. Two dedicated Falcon 900 aircraft, one based at Teterboro airport in New Jersey, US and another at Le Bourget outside of Paris, are on call around the clock to expedite spares and technicians for Falcon customers and, if necessary, carry them on to their intended destination – an industry first, the company said in a statement. - TradeArabia News Service