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Following a two-year certification campaign during which three fight-test aircraft logged an aggregate total of some 1,500-flight-hours, Dassault’s Falcon 6X has been granted FAA and EASA type-certification.
The first Falcon 6X production aircraft are currently undergoing final completion in preparation for customer deliveries.
Dassault Aviation chairman and CEO Eric Trappier stated: “Certification of the Falcon 6X is a remarkable milestone for Dassault Aviation. We would like to recognize the EASA and FAA certification teams for their commitment in this demanding process and our customers for their confidence. The Falcon 6X is the first brand-new business jet to comply with the latest regulations, which will enhance the safety and security of all new aircraft.”
Notwithstanding its middle-of-the-pack 6X designation—which falls mathematically short of its 8X, 10X, and 2000LXS stablemates—Dassault’s Falcon 6X is a truly large, lavish, impressive, and capable aircraft. By way of dimensions, the 6X’s wings span 85.1-feet; its empennage towers a lordly 24.5-feet; and the machine’s 84.3-foot-long fuselage encompasses a cabin featuring a six-foot, six-inch stand-up-height and an interior volume of 1,843-cubic-foot. To the probable chagrin of certain Savannah- and Montreal-based airframers, the Falcon 6X’s cabin is, in fact, the largest of any contemporary business aircraft. Moreover, the 6X’s interior received the coveted Red Dot award for its sleek, modern, and high-productivity design. While the layout of the Falcon 6X’s capacious cabin is a matter of owner-discretion, the space comfortably accommodates 12 to 16 passengers.
Weighing 42,270-pounds empty, the Falcon 6X has a maximum takeoff weight of 77,459-pounds and a fuel-capacity of 33,786-pounds. Departing a sea-level airport fully-loaded under ISA conditions, the Falcon 6X’s takeoff distance is an eminently reasonable 5,480-feet. Approach speed at a typical landing weight is a leisurely 109-knots.
Motivated by a pair of Pratt & Whitney Canada PW812D turbofan engines each producing 13,500 lbf thrust, the Falcon 6X manages a 0.90 MMO and a service-ceiling of FL510. At FL410, the aircraft maintains a comfortable 3,900-foot cabin altitude.
Carrying eight passengers at Mach 0.80, the Falcon 6X has an advertised range of 5,500-nautical-miles. Advancing the power-levers to Mach 0.85 allegedly reduces range to a still-impressive 5,100-nautical-miles.
Among the most significant of the Dassault’s Falcon 6X’s myriad fetching features is the aircraft’s flight control system, which incorporates bilateral flaperons (flaps that function, also, as ailerons) and does away with the spoilers found on the 7X and 8X. The 6X’s flaperons, to enhance roll control, move in the same direction as ailerons. Also, the flaperons aid in pitch control in the event of elevator control failure.
Unlike the hydraulic flaps characteristic of previous Falcon models, the 6X’s flaps are actuated electrically.
Drag-increase is facilitated via four airbrakes—two on each wing—which function in conjunction with the aforementioned flaperons. The described configuration reduces vibration to a significant degree compared to the spoiler-equipped 8X.
During landings—assuming proper arming of the requisite systems—the 6X’s ailerons, flaperons, and airbrakes automatically articulate upwards, dissipating lift and shifting the aircraft’s weight from its wings to its wheels as expeditiously as safely possible. Roll control remains fully-available throughout landing insofar as the opposite side aileron remains capable of downward deflection.
The Falcon 6X’s flight-deck features Dassault’s EASy IV avionics suite with Honeywell’s Primus Epic System.
Falcon 6X owners will enjoy a worldwide support network including FalconResponse, a suite of Aircraft On Ground (AOG) support services dedicated to quickly returning grounded Falcon jets to operation. Dedicated FalconResponse aircraft remain available to provide alternative passenger lift when necessary—an industry first. Another Falcon service innovation, FalconScan, is an aircraft monitoring system capable of preemptively identifying potential maintenance issues.
Parties interested in acquiring their own specimens of Dassault’s Falcon 6X can expect to have their wallets lightened by approximately $56-million (USD).
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