Dassault Aviation has delivered its 2,500th Falcon business jet, a Falcon 900LX which was handed over to a US customer at the company’s Little Rock, Arkansas completion centre.
“Over the half century it has been in operation, the Falcon fleet has amassed an amazing 17.8 million hours of flight time with some 1,230 operators in 90 countries around the world,” Eric Trappier, chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation, said in a statement on July 20.
“Moreover, of the 2,500 Falcons delivered to date, more than 2,100 are still flying – which is a clear testimony to the high quality and robustness of our Falcon aircraft and the dedication of those that support them.”
The original Falcon jet, a Mystère 20, was delivered in 1965, while the Falcon 900 has been the best selling member of the Falcon Jet family, with more than 500 built to date.
Both the Mystère 20 (or Falcon 20) and Falcon 900 have served in the Royal Australian Air Force as VIP transports, while nine Falcons of various models are currently on the Australian civil aircraft register – one Falcon 7X, two Falcon 900s, two Falcon 2000s, two Falcon 50s and two Falcon/Mystère 20s.
An indepth feature on the Dassault Aviation Falcon Jet line appears in the August issue of Australian Aviation, on sale in Australia on July 27.
