Dassault’s new Falcon 6X is now in the detail design phase, with the aircraft architecture frozen and major program partners on board. “Everything is on track for the Falcon 6X to begin deliveries in 2022,” said Eric Trappier, chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation.
The aircraft was unveiled earlier in 2018. A full-scale cabin mockup was on display at NBAA-BACE in October 2018.
Key selling points include the aircraft’s range – 5,500 nautical miles (10,186km) and its cabin space. Dassault says the 6X will have the tallest (6ft 6in) and widest (8ft 6in) cross-section of any purpose-built business jet. It will accommodate 12-16 passengers in three lounge areas. Layout options include a large entryway, a crew rest area and a rear lounge.
The aircraft will have 30 windows, using nearly 5,300in² (34,193cm²) of glass. The 6X also features a skylight in the galley area. There will also be a new onboard integrated maintenance system, FalconScan, which will monitor more than 100,000 parameters for real-time system self-diagnosis.
“The development schedule is unusually tight for a program such as this,” said Trappier. “However, there is a good level of embedded maturity in aircraft and component design and we are very confident of achieving a first flight in 2021.”
Manufacture of the aft fuselage began during the summer of 2018 and production of the mid fuselage section is set to follow soon. Design activities for the nacelles (inlet, fan cowls, thrust reverser and engine build-up system), supplied by UTC Aerospace Systems, a new Dassault partner, are also underway.
The PW812D engines are performing bench and flight tests with more engines in preparation as the program evolves. Dassault and its program partners have also commenced a number of other development activities, including stress computation, maintainability analysis and manufacturing validation.
