Global Aviator South Africa - April 2018

46 Vol. 10 / No. 4 / April 2018 Global Aviator

Out of Dassault

On 28 February,

Dassault announced

the launch of the

Falcon 6X program.

The name and

specifications were

no surprise, after the

ultimate cancellation

of the delayed Falcon

5X program at the end

of 2017. The challenges

faced by the French

company makes a

great textbook case for

both marketing and

engineering students.

When Dassault was

informed of a new delay

of the Snecma Silvercrest

power plant designed for

the Falcon 5X, the engineers

at Dassault Falcon under

pressure of top management

were given only 6 weeks to

come up with a rough sketch

of an alternative solution.

They ended up fitting

the closest competitor of

the Silvercrest, the Pratt &

Whitney Canada PW800

turbofan, to the fuselage.

Then, a 20 inch fuselage

plug was added in front of

the wing to balance against

the heavier engines, making

the new design even bigger

than the already biggest-in-

class 5X. There you have it:

the Falcon 6X in a nutshell.

Worthy

its own name

With the first engineering

results, the challenge was

forwarded to the marketing

department. Was the new

design still a Falcon 5X,

or was the new design

worthy of its own name?

In the end, the sales

people probably decided

the new plane deserved

its own name and for two

6 X

Falcon

DASSAULT

The largest and widest cabin cross section

in any purpose built business jet

FalconEye Combined Vision System HUD

Pics: Dassault Aviation