aviation - the past, present and future of flight

Dassault unveiled its new Falcon 6X

business twinjet at Saint-Cloud, France, on

February 28. The new aircraft is powered

by a pair of Pratt & Whitney Canada

PW800 engines, has a range of 5,500nm

(10,186km) and is due to make its  rst  ight

in early 2021. Deliveries are set to begin

during 2022.

The 6X is based on the Falcon 5X

aerodynamics and system features, which

were validated during the latter’s preliminary

 ight test programme. It has been optimised

to take advantage of the new engine,

offering a greater range and a longer cabin.

“We wanted to further push the

boundaries with this new aircraft, to provide

the best  ight experience possible using

today’s aviation know-how,” said Eric

Trappier, Chairman and CEO of Dassault

Aviation. “The Falcon 6X will offer a mix

of range, comfort and capability no other

large cabin business jet can match, while

guaranteeing fully mature systems and a

proven powerplant.”

The Falcon 6X is equipped with an ultra-

efficient wing that minimises the impact of

turbulence and a next-generation digital

 ight control system that controls all moving

surfaces. The 6X is also the  rst business

jet to be  tted with a  aperon, which is said

to considerably improve control during

approach, especially on steep descents.

CIVIL ORDERS

Airline Aircraft Number Order Placed Notes

Air Sénégal A330neos 2 February 2 The fl edgling airline originally signed a

memorandum of understanding for the aircraft at the

Dubai Airshow in November and has now offi cially

placed the order

Bangkok Airways ATR 72-600 4 February 7 The deal, signed at the Singapore Airshow, is

valued at over $100m. Deliveries of these aircraft

will take place between October 2018 and March

2019

China Aircraft

Leasing Group

A320neo 15 January 12 These A320neos will be delivered in stages between

2022 and 2023. Following this incremental order,

CALC’s total order book with Airbus will increase to

217 aircraft

Pelita Air Service N219 20 February 8 See news story

Spirit Airlines A320ceo 5 January 17 The US-based low-cost carrier is expanding its fl eet

following the introduction of new routes from Florida

Trigana Air Service N219 5 February 8 See news story

Unidentifi ed 737 MAX 1 January 30 For an undisclosed business jet/VIP customer

Unidentifi ed 737 MAX 4 January 30 Customer details have been withheld by Boeing

Unidentifi ed 737 MAX 13 January 30 Customer details have been withheld by Boeing

UPS 747-8 Freighter 14 February 1 The latest 747-8F commitment builds on UPS’

original order for 14, three of which were delivered

in 2017

UPS 767F 4 February 1 Kentucky-based carrier expecting to receive the

airframes by the end of 2022

A major milestone in Embraer’s

E190-E2 programme has been

reached with ANAC, Brazil’s

civil aviation authority, the

Federal Aviation Authority,

and the European Aviation

Safety Agency, all granting

Type Certi cation on February

28. So far, the four E190-E
    prototypes have logged a
    total of 2,200  ight hours and
    completed some 34,000 hours
    of rigorous tests in laboratories
    with rigs for avionics, structures
    and electrical, hydraulic and
    environmental systems. The

certi cation approvals pave

the way for delivery of the  rst

customer aircraft to Norway’s

Widerøe Airlines in April.

Shortly before the Type

Certi cation was granted,

prototype PR-ZFU appeared

in the static line-up at the

Singapore Airshow in ‘tiger’

markings. These follow on from

the special ‘Pro t Hunter’ eagle

markings worn by the E190-E

at last year’s Paris Airshow.

Computer-generated image of the new long-range Falcon 6X business twinjet. Dassault

Dassault Falcon 6X Launched

Embraer E190-E2 Earns its Stripes

CIVIL NEWS

12 Aviation News incorporating Jets April 2018

Embraer E190-E2 PR-ZFU on show

in Singapore. Key-Craig West

Gulfstream

Delivers Final

G

The last production Gulfstream G

business jet, N607D, was handed

over to its owner, Dominion Energy, at

a ceremony on January 20 and was

subsequently delivered to the company’s

Richmond, Virginia base. The G450 is a

derivative of the original Gulfstream GIV

and is widely used by corporate operators

and by fractional ownership companies,

notably NetJets.

The GIV series has been in production

for more than 30 years and Gulfstream

Aerospace reports that the  eet has

 own in excess of 964,000 hours and

461,000  ights. The 3,500nm (6,500km)

G450 is being replaced on the Savannah

production line by the new G500, which

has longer range. Rod Simpson

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