Dassault Aviation has successfully completed its first flight of company’s widebody Falcon 6X business jet. With test pilots Bruno Ferry and Fabrice Valette at its controls, aircraft 6X s/n 01 lifted off from Dassault Aviation’s Mérignac plant near Bordeaux and undertook two hour and thirty minute maiden flight, with the pilots testing aircraft handling qualities, engine response and the behavior of key aircraft systems. The aircraft topped out at 40,000 ft and reached a speed of M0.8 before returning to its base.
“The 6X flew exactly as predicted by our models. From a pilot’s perspective, it flies like a Falcon, which is to say with perfect precise handling in all phases of flight," said Ferry. “Fabrice and I are honored to have made the latest first flight in another fantastic Falcon."
The Falcon 6X gets the tallest and widest cabin in business aviation measuring six feet, six inches in height and eight feet, six inches in width. With an intercontinental range of 5,500 nm, the aircraft will fly from London to Hong Kong or Los Angeles to Moscow nonstop. It also features an advanced version of the pioneering digital flight control system first introduced on the Falcon 7X and further refined on the Falcon 8X.
“We dedicate today’s achievement to Olivier Dassault, who died tragically on Sunday. Olivier was a Falcon pilot who perfectly embodied his family’s boundless passion for aviation," said Dassault Aviation Chairman/CEO Eric Trappier. “The 6X is the latest example of the fusion of military know-how and business aviation expertise for which Dassault Aviation is so respected," added Trappier.
Dassault’s FalconEye combined vision system will be standard on the 6X, providing enhanced safety and situational awareness on approaches in darkness or poor weather. The 6X will also be the first Falcon equipped with the FalconScan advanced diagnostics system, which monitors and reports on 100,000 maintenance parameters. The aircraft is powered by new-generation Pratt & Whitney PW812D engines.
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