Story ID: 381 Falcon5X.doc
Dassault showcases Falcon 5X cabin mockup
By: Thierry Dubois
Caption: First delivery of the twinjet in the region to take place in 2017
Word Count: 330
Dassault Aviation is here exhibiting its Falcon 7X and Falcon 900LX long-range business jets and a full-scale cabin mock-up of the new Falcon 5X, which the manufacturer categorizes as “ultra-wide body.”

The Falcon 5X is understood to be in the final stages of assembly at the company’s Bordeaux, France factory, preparing for ground tests. It is scheduled to fly in the second quarter of 2015 and receive certification late in 2016.

One of the first deliveries, in the second half of 2017, will take place in the Middle East. The region accounts for 20 percent of the twinjet’s sales. The Falcon 5X can fly nonstop from Dubai to Cape Town or from Riyadh to Tokyo.

The Falcon 8X, a 7X derivative, is due to roll out on December 17 at Dassault’s Bordeaux, France, headquarters, and to make a first flight in the first quarter of next year. It can fly from Jeddah to Boston, or New York to Dubai.

Both aircraft are well suited to operators in the Middle East because the latter place a high premium on spaciousness, range, operating flexibility and economics, Dassault believes. The firm’s best-selling business jet in the Middle East is still the 5,950 nm Falcon 7X, which accounts for half of all Falcon sales in the region over the last five years. The first Falcon 2000S–Dassault’s cheapest aircraft–in the Middle East was delivered to a Saudi Arabian customer in October.

“The early success of our two latest model offerings reflects the wide popularity the entire Falcon fleet has long enjoyed in the Middle East,” said Dassault Aviation chairman and CEO Eric Trappier. “Operators in the region truly appreciate the operating performance, flexibility and technological excellence offered by Falcon aircraft.”

In the region, Dassault operates an authorized service center, spares distribution center and regional sales office in Dubai, as well as an authorized service center and technical office in Jeddah.