Story ID: 617
Falcon 5X Facing Potential Program Delay
By: Matt Thurber
Caption: Dassault's NBAA show press conference revealed a new delay for the 5X program, optimism for the business aviation market and improvements to the 8X.
Word Count: 501
The Silvercrest engine for the Falcon 5X has encountered a new problem during testing that might further delay the aircraft program, engine maker Safran Aircraft Engines informed Dassault early last month.

Dassault test pilots have flown the 5X for 50 hours with preliminary "non-production" engines since the new Falcon first took to the sky on July 5. During testing, the aircraft reached 41,000 feet and Mach 0.85. “Pilot feedback on aircraft handling qualities has been extremely positive, with excellent system performance in all conditions of flight, and aerodynamic behavior has been exactly as predicted,” Dassault chairman and CEO Eric Trappier said last month at the NBAA Convention.

Entry into service for the 5X had already been rescheduled to 2020 because of earlier problems with the Silvercrest engine, but the full effect of the new problem has yet to be determined. The program “will have to be postponed again,” he said. “It will take a few more weeks for measuring all the consequences of this very unfortunate issue and define an appropriate solution. We’re trying to fix the program with Safran and trying to keep all our options open. The problem is a serious one.”

“Recent testing in our flying testbed in San Antonio [Texas] does not completely meet our expectations,” said Cédric Goubet, executive vice president of Safran’s Commercial Engines Division. He explained that all technical fixes for the problems from two years ago that originally delayed the 5X program have been validated and incorporated into the design. The new problem has to do with the responsiveness of the high-pressure compressor at high altitudes, he explained. “The compressor is a bit too slow to accelerate and decelerate. We have a good understanding of the issue. There are several solutions that we have to discuss with the customer. Safran is absolutely committed to delivering the right engine, and we will get there.”

Trappier went on to address questions about Dassault’s newest business jet program, about which he revealed few details. “Our design engineers are actively working on a new model,” he said, “and some of our partners are already getting involved in concept design.” What makes the new program significant is that it will be fully [conceived] within the Dassault Systèmes 3D Experience digital design system, which incorporates all elements of a product, from design to manufacturing to product support.

“We are now entering a new era, one that emphasizes a fully collaborative development approach,” he explained. “One that streamlines information exchange between corporate divisions and between outside partners, ensuring that all participants are perfectly integrated into the project. Such an approach will be applied to all facets of activity, from concept studies, manufacturing, purchasing and procurement to customer service, both at the subcontractor level and in-house, and combine financial and economic as well as technical data and even integrate the fourth dimension: time.”

 

 

 

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