DASSAULT AVIATION flew its first Falcon 900EX long-range business jet non-stop from Luton,UK, to Las Vegas, Nevada, for its NBAA debut. The flight demonstrated the aircraft's 8,320km (4,500nm) design range, the manufacturer says, covering an air distance of 8,700km with a payload equivalent to more than eight passengers and three crew.
Air-traffic delays at Las Vegas resulted in the aircraft landing with less than the planned fuel reserves, but Dassault test pilot Guy Mitaux-Maurouard says that the aircraft had the predicted 1,050kg fuel remaining at 8,320km air distance. Cruise speed was Mach 0.75, at 43,000ft (13,100m), against an average 5kt (9km/h) headwind.
The 900EX is an upgrade of the 900B tri-jet, with improved AlliedSignal TFE731-60 engines, greater fuel capacity and updated Honeywell Primus 2000 avionics. Certification is planned for the second quarter of 1996.
The manufacturer, meanwhile, has begun modification of two Falcon 50 tri-jets to serve as prototypes for the improved 50EX. One aircraft is being modified at Dassault Falcon Jet, Little Rock, Arkansas, to test the new Rockwell-Collins Pro Line 4 avionics, and will be flown in December. The second is being modified in France, to test the new TFE731-40 engines, and will be flown in March 1996.
Certification is expected in September 1996, when it will replace the current aircraft.
Source: Flight International
