Dassault Aviation saw orders for both business jets and Rafale fighters slip last year, with the airframer also failing to meet delivery guidance for both product lines.
Orders for its Falcon business jets showed the biggest year-on-year drop, slumping to 23 aircraft, down from 64 in 2022.
A total of 60 Rafales were ordered in 2023 – 42 tranche 5 jets for the French air force and 18 for Indonesia – down on the 92 commitments received the previous year, the bulk of which were accounted for by an 80-unit deal from the United Arab Emirates.
Another 18 Rafales for Indonesia were added to backlog earlier this month.
On the delivery side, Dassault shipped 26 Falcon jets, down on the 32 handed over in 2022 and against the 35 units it guided for.
That appears to have been driven by post-certification modifications required to the fuel tanks of the new Falcon 6X, which have led to slower than expected deliveries for the ultra-wide-cabin twinjet. Approvals for the aircraft from European and US regulators were also only received in August 2023, further slowing shipments.
Dassault also handed over 13 Rafales, against guidance of 15 units; in 2022 it delivered 14 examples.
Backlog for the Falcon family stood at 84 aircraft at the end of December, down three units on 2022’s total, while Dassault held orders for 211 Rafales, against 164 at the end of the previous year.
