We Fly Dassault Falcon 6X
“Bigger is better” is Dassault Aviation’s motto for its new-generation business jets. This was clear when I first stepped into the brand new Falcon 6X at the company flight testing facility in The Istres-Le Tube Base Air Station (LFMI) to the west of Marseille. Its appearance is remarkably more significant than its diminutive predecessors, like Dassault’s new Falcon 8X flagship.
Falcon 6X Falcon 6X is, by far, Dassault’s most potent, heavy, largest, and most efficient business jet in the 60-year history of the business jet manufacturing line.
[Courtesy: Dassault Aviation]
The 6X represents a shift in Dassault’s design ethos. Falcons always appealed to engineers, pilots, and technicians. They’re slim, fast, and fuel-efficient.
Today, comfort for passengers is the primary concern. The most recent Falcon aircraft has a more extensive interior and a higher cabin than any private jet in the current production. The Falcon is also expected to have low internal noise.
This is a 38-ton aircraft when it is at its maximum takeoff weight. I wanted to know whether it had the legendary agility of earlier Falcon aircraft, which were influenced by Dassault’s famed Mirage and Rafale fighters. In light of its size, could it perform better than a ‘Bus tour’ coming from Toulouse?”
[Courtesy: Dassault Aviation]
A. Single or dual FalconEye head-up displays featuring 40-degree broad and 30-degree vertical areas of view are highly desirable alternatives.
B. EASy IV primary flight displays offer 3D representations of airports, which include signs for taxiways, runways, ramps, and runways. Sirius XM satellite radio weather advisory, ADS B IN traffic, and Honeywell ROAAS are also available.
Falcon is a technological marvel, starting with its fly-by-wire digital controls for flight. Dassault was the first to introduce FBW on business planes using the Falcon 7X, which entered service in 2007. It borrowed heavily from the technologies it operated for over 40 years on its fighter jets, such as the Mach 2 class Rafale.
Fly By Wire
Performance and stability are two of the most popular trade-offs in civil and military aircraft design. The more agile the performance and stability, the more strength must be sacrificed. This Rafale, which I have flown in the past 16 years, is a perfect illustration. It’s so unstable without electronic flight control that it’s almost impossible for anyone but an experienced tester pilot to operate. You can fit the Rafale with FBW, and it’s just as easy to fly as a Falcon 10.
In contrast to Falcon 10, which is a different model Falcon 10, though, unlike the Falcon 10, Rafale will keep its flight route even when you release the controls, regardless of modifications to speed or configuration. The Rafale is also equipped with a fully-protected flight envelope. You can bank and then yank until you’re close to blacking out. If you can bring the stick until it reaches the stops, it isn’t possible to overstress it, cause it to stop, or create a spin. Dassault’s phrase”carefree handling” is “carefree handling.” The pilot can focus on more critical tasks like navigating dangers or bandits, examining six to identify them, delivering ammunition to the object, or shooting the criminals.
It is believed that the Falcon 5X would have Dassault’s most recent version of FBW flight controls that incorporate nose wheel steering, flaps, and slats. It would also make the world’s first corporate jet equipped with flaperons – trailing edge devices that integrate Aileron and flap functions. When deflected with the ailerons, flaperons boost the roll control power, making it easier to control the roll at lower speeds. If flight spoilers are in use, the flaperons can deflect downwards while the ailerons move upwards to increase drag. This helps reduce buffeting and remove the outboard wing sections. Be aware that the flaperons can make it appear limmer more than it seems.
Transforming Tech
Two technologies that enabled the Falcon 5X are the critical factors in this Falcon 5X’s phenomenal success. The first was Dassault’s capability to create low-drag, lightweight airframes. The Falcon 5X’s total weight will be 5,000 pounds lighter than the G450 or 12,000 pounds less than the Global 5000. Another option was Safran’s 11450 lb.-thrust Snecma Silvercrest turbofan engines that promised 15 percent more efficient fuel consumption than other engines and significantly less emissions.
The Silvercrest was Safran’s first completely domestically-produced turbofan engine for civil aviation. The tasks proved too challenging, especially when developing the high-pressure or core section. After Silvercrest could not achieve a set of performance benchmarks, leading to unacceptably long delays during this Falcon 5X certification campaign, Dassault terminated Safran as its engine supplier and stopped this Falcon 5X program in late 2017.