The first Dassault Falcon 50 fitted with Aviation Partners' blended winglets arrived in Geneva on Saturday and will be on static throughout the show.
The aircraft is taking a break from winglet certification flight testing, which started just a few weeks ago, in order to make its show debut.
The "High Mach" blended winglets are a revolutionary new design optimised for higher cruise speeds. The winglets provide a drag reduction and a corresponding range increase of 5% at Mach 0.8 and more than 7% at long-range cruise.
"Immediately after EBACE, we will return to certification flight testing, with FAA approval anticipated in late-July and EASA certification shortly after," says API Vice President Sales and Marketing Gary Dunn. "We have already seen significant interest from Falcon 50 owners and have started taking orders for early post-certification installation slots."
The aircraft arrived in Geneva from Seattle's Boeing Field with a stop in Keflavik, Iceland. Pilots Dave Hurley, Bo Corby and John Reinhold reported a significant improvement in initial cruise altitude and fuel burn on the initial (longer) leg of the trip when the 5790km (3,130nm) trip was completed in 7h 49m at on average of M0.73 and a cruise altitude of Flight level 410 (41,000ft/12,500m); the Falcon landed in Iceland with 948kg (2,090lb) of fuel.
Joe Clark, API founder and CEO says: "We are excited to be showcasing the rebirth of the Falcon 50 here at EBACE. Blended winglets make one of the greatest business jets ever produced even better,"
Installation of Falcon 50 Winglets will be available through API's current network of authorised installers in the US, Europe and Asia later this summer.
Source: Flight Daily News
