As France's only business-jet manufacturer, Dassault Aviation, is competing in a market that has become particularly hard fought. Not only are manufacturers in the USA introducing new products across-the-board, but others elsewhere in the world are knocking on the door of the traditional suppliers.
The business decisions made by Dassault Aviation during the recession are proving to have been right, however, such that today the Bordeaux-based manufacturer accounts for around one-third of all business-jet sales, with increased sales having been achieved through a clever blend of introducing the right products without having to spend excessive amounts of development money. The success of the initiatives can be judged by the fact that Dassault Aviation now accounts for around 20% of the total figure for France's civil-aircraft and space exports, with annual sales of Fr5.5 billion ($950 million).
The strategy has been based around fielding three new aircraft, the all-new coast-to-coast Falcon 2000, and extended range, upgraded developments of the existing long-range Falcon 900 and its smaller cousin, the Falcon 50. This has been coupled with a marketing effort that has seen a growth in orders, to 40 aircraft of all types in 1996, with predictions that the figure for this year will be even higher.
Most of Dassault Aviation's sales are to the USA. The improvement in its fortunes, however, also depends on penetrating the fast-growing Far East market. Jean-Francois Georges, Dassault Aviation's director general, civil aircraft, says that business jets are needed in the area "-because there is a growing need for reliable, comfortable transportation where business is expanding rapidly, but aircraft and airports are often crowded".
Dassault Aviation has therefore teamed with China Xinhua to form a new company, Oriental Falcon Jet Service, to offer initially a single Falcon 50 for charter. "We expect that to expand to ten aircraft within a year", says Georges.
Increased production
Such has been the demand for aircraft that Dassault Aviation is considering increasing production at its Merignac plant, near Bordeaux, from five aircraft a month to at least six. The decision is not an easy one, says Georges-"we want to ensure we never suffer again from the problems of overcapacity, which means you can end up with white tails [unsold aircraft]". He adds, however, that Dassault Aviation is prepared if necessary to fund the tooling for the production increase, although more emphasis is being placed on reducing production lead times. "We think we can reduce some production cycles from 12 months to eight," says Georges, "particularly on the Falcon 50EX, which is in demand from customers who are less inclined to wait 12 or 15 months for delivery."
At the top of the range is the Falcon 900EX, the company's low-cost answer to the ultra-long range GV and Global Express developments from Gulfstream and Bombardier. respectively. For a while, Dassault Aviation was committed to competing in this market with an all-new aircraft, the Falcon 9000. It soon became clear, however, that in so doing, the company would be risking a great deal of money for a market that, with three contenders, would be over-supplied.
The decision was then taken to develop the Falcon 900 to fill a niche between the GV/Global Express and business jets in the Falcon 900B/Gulfstream GIV category. The result is an aircraft which placed Dassault Aviation firmly in the long-range camp while enabling it to field a product which was available much earlier than either of the competition's aircraft.
More power
The changes were achieved principally by equipping the aircraft with new, more-powerful and fuel-efficient AlliedSignal TFE 731-60 turbofans, installing an extra fuel tank in the rear, extending the forward tank, replacing the original avionics with Honeywell's Primus 2000 suite, an integrated flight-management system and optional head-up display (as fitted to the Falcon 2000). The aircraft was launched in October 1994 at the National Business Aircraft Association (NBAA) convention, rolled out in March 1995 and certificated in France in May 1996. Its first customer delivery was the following November. The Falcon 900 has already shown its capabilities by carrying out several record breaking flights, one of which was from Australia to Florida, with a stop at Maui, in Hawaii. Total en route time was 17h 57min for the 16,000km (8,635nm) journey.
The all-new Falcon 2000 was launched in October 1990, with European Joint Aviation Authorities certification in November 1994. It has been well received in the market (although Dassault declines to reveal precise sales figures), particularly in terms of its performance, which exceeded specifications to the extent that permissible maximum take-off weight was increased by 565kg. The Falcon 2000 is equipped with Rockwell-Collins Pro Line IV avionics and Sextant Avionique liquid-crystal engine displays, and was the first business jet to be offered with an optional, fully certified head-up guidance system.
The Falcon 2000, equipped with a pair of GE/AlliedSignal CFE738 engines, is designed specifically for the US coast-to-coast market and has a range of 5,500km with eight passengers, and a 41,000ft (12,500m) initial cruising altitude. The aircraft has also recently received an unusual approval - to carry out the steep approach at London City Airport.
The decision to launch a long-range derivative of the Falcon 50, which was certificated in France in 1979, followed similar reasoning to that for the Falcon 900EX. Why develop an all-new aircraft when you can adapt an existing one and remain in the market?
Launched in April 1995, the Falcon 50EX was presented at the November, 1996 NBAA meeting, with delivery of the first aircraft in January and production launch of the first 30 airframes. Principal changes to the original aircraft are the change to AlliedSignal TFE 731-40 engines, offering 10% increased climb and 24% increased cruise thrust, and new avionics, similar to those of the Falcon 2000.
Jean-Francois Georges is hesitant about the right strategy lower down the range - for something to replace the Falcon 20. "An aircraft of this size corresponds to European mission requirments," he says, "and I sometimes regret we do not make it any more." The challenge is to develop an aircraft that - while not significantly different in its basic configuration, is nevertheless less expensive to build and operate. "We cannot carry out a similar modification as we have on the Falcon 50 and 900," says Georges, "because the basic airframe is too old. If we launch something, it won't be before 1998 - and when we decide we will move very fast."
There is no doubt that Dassault Aviation is heading for the next century with the right products either on the line or under consideration. Given the vagaries of recession - it clearly has very good prospects to remain among the top rank of business-aircraft manufacturers.
LIGHT AIRCRAFT
The French light-aircraft market has yet to see the kind of strong recovery that has been seen in the USA. This is not least because of a lack of confidence among potential buyers faced with continuing economic uncertainty as France works to meet the Maastricht criteria for joining the single-European currency.
There are four light-aircraft manufacturers in France - Socata, a subsidiary of state-owned Aerospatiale, Avions Pierre Robin, Reims Aviation and Avions Mudry. The biggest is Socata, which offers aircraft ranging from the smallest four-seat TB9 Tampico light trainer to the six/seven-seat high-performance TB700 turboprop business/utility single. The most recent addition to the line-up is the TB320 Tangara, a twin-engined four-seater derived from the Grumman Cougar, for which the manufacturing licence was acquired in 1995. Now equipped with a pair of 134kW(180hp) Continental piston engines in place of the original 119kW units, the TB320, which will be marketed for around $400,000, is due for certification in May, and will effectively complete the range.
Improvements to other aircraft continue, with the fixed-landing gear TB9 Tampico Club, TB10 Tobago and TB200 Tobago XL trainers due to receive upgraded landing gears which are better adapted to the rigours of the repeated landings which occur during training. First deliveries of the modified aircraft are due at the end of the year.
A surprise came in February with the announcement that Socata was to team with Renault Sport on an all-new four cylinder diesel aero-engine. The first of the planned range will be the MR250, which will be fitted to a Socata light aircraft in time for presentation at the Paris air show.
Avions Robin is one of France's oldest light-aircraft manufacturers, famous for its DR400 wooden four-seaters, which are still in production at the Dijon factory. Last year saw the manufacturer achieve the best sales figures of any general-aviation company in Europe, at 45 units - with more than half that number ordered since September. Efforts are now being concentrated on marketing the DR400 in its four versions, as well as the all-metal Robin 200, 2160 and 3000.
Reims Aviation now licence-produces the Cessna F406, relying also on subcontract work. Its hopes rest on receiving authorisation from the revitalised Cessna to restart licence manufacture of the 172 and 182 four-seaters, which would give the manufacturer a much-needed boost.
Avions Mudry filed for bankruptcy in August 1996, following the sudden withdrawal of financing by its banks, leaving it with debts of around Fr15 million. The builder of the well-known Cap 230 and Cap 232 aerobatic aircraft thus finds itself waiting for a buyer or partner, with the most likely contender at the time of writing being Dyn'Aero, which wants to bring its CR100 aerobatic monoplane to the Mudry range to create what it says is a "renaissance" in the French aerobatic aircraft business.
Source: Flight International
