The Falcon X5 is dead, long live the Falcon X6. On 28 February, Dassault Aviation presented a new top-of-the-range business jet replacing the previous model, whose programme was abandoned just three months ago. Problems with the design of the engine developed by Safran led to a three-year delay in production before Dassault finally decided to throw in the towel and terminate its contract with Safran last December to launch a new aircraft.
To bring this Falcon X6 to life, Dassault has turned to Pratt & Whitney Canada and its PW812D engine, which has already clocked up more than 585,000 flight hours in service. This change seems to be a positive one for the aircraft manufacturer, since the aircraft's range has increased by 555 km to 10,186 km. This means it can fly non-stop from Los Angeles to Geneva.Beijing to San Francisco or Moscow to Singapore at cruising speed. It can also fly routes such as New York-Moscow, Paris-Peking or Los Angeles-London at Mach 0.85, with a maximum speed of Mach 0.90.
The Falcon X6 improves in terms of range and comfort
Comfort is obviously one of the strong points of this new aircraft, with the Falcon X6 benefiting from the features of the X5 with several additional improvements. It retains the generous dimensions of the X5, with a height of 1.98 m, a width of 2.58 m and a length of 12.3 m. A maximum of 16 passengers will be able to enjoy the aircraft's three lounges, with a luxurious interior featuring bench seats that can be converted into single beds. "The industry trend is towards more spacious, high-ceilinged interiors"says Éric Trappier, CEO of Dassault Aviation. The brightness of the Falcon X6 has also been improved with 28 large windows, as well as a surprising zenithal window in the galley, the area where the crew reheat their meals.
The new model costs two million dollars more than its predecessor, to reach 47 million dollars. Éric Trappier announced that the production of these aircraft would be two per month, or 24 per year. The CEO has also committed to a first flight in 2021. The first orders will arrive in 2022.
