10 Things You Didn’t Know about the Dassault Falcon 900
The Dassault Falcon 900 is one of the current members of the Dassault Falcon family, which consists of jets produced by the French aircraft manufacturer Dassault Aviation for business use. The Dassault Falcon 900 can claim to be one of the most business jets that can be found out there, as shown by the fact that it remains in use even though its initial introduction happened in 1984. Something that speaks lengths about the number of customers who have put it to excellent use over the course of decades. Here are 10 things that you may or may not have known about the Dassault Falcon 900:
1. Sprung From the Dassault Falcon 50
The Dassault Falcon 900 sprung from the Dassault Falcon 50, which in turn, sprung from the Dassault Falcon 20. In fact, it is interesting to note that it was the Dassault Falcon 20 that started up the Dassault Falcon family, which might be confusing for people who are familiar with the Dassault Falcon 10. This is because the Dassault Falcon 10 followed the Dassault Falcon 20, which is why it is sometimes regarded as a scaled-down version of its predecessor.
2. Uses Composite Materials
Composite materials see a fair amount of use in the Dassault Falcon 900. For those who are unfamiliar with the exact definition, a composite material is something made using two or more materials, thus resulting in properties possessed by none of those materials on their own.
3. Has a Sibling
There are people who consider the Dassault Falcon 900 to be a sibling to the Dassault Falcon 7X. The latter is the biggest member of the Dassault Falcon family, being based on the Dassault Falcon 900 but incorporating new improvements.
4. Is a Trijet
The Dassault Falcon 900 is what is called a trijet, meaning an aircraft that is powered by three jet engines. This choice provides such aircraft with a number of advantages, which range from increased redundancy to a faster time loading and unloading passengers because of the location of the door.
5. Was Once One of a Small Number of Trijets in Production
Trijets are not particularly common. In fact, there was a point in time when the Dassault Falcon 900 and the Dassault Falcon 7X were the sole examples of trijets that were in production. However, things have changed since that time, which is why there are now more trijets being made besides those two examples.
6. Has a S-Duct Central Engine
One of the most notable characteristics of the Dassault Falcon 900 is the fact that it has a S-duct, which is a kind of intake duct for jet engines that can be seen on a number of trijets. Originally, the S-duct was invented so that it would be easier for the relevant parties to service trijets, which is why it can still be found on both the Dassault Falcon 900 and its sibling while other examples have since stopped being made.
7. More Than 500 Made So Far
The Dassault Falcon 900 is used by a wide range of clients in a wide range of countries. As a result, it is perhaps unsurprising to learn that more than 500 of said aircraft has been made so far, which is a figure that states much about its success over the decades since its initial introduction.
8. Costs $44.8 Million
For those who are curious, a single Dassault Falcon 900 costs $44.8 million. Of course, there are numerous other factors that can influence the price as well, meaning that interested individuals should expect a figure around that one rather than being exactly on point.
9. Has Variants
Of course, since the Dassault Falcon 900 has been so successful, it stands to reason that it would have multiple variants. One example is the Dassault Falcon 900 MSA, which has a search radar as well as a hatch for dropping things because of its intended role in the Japan Coast Guard. Another example is the Dassault Falcon 900EX, which is a version of the aircraft with extra-long range.
10. Used For Transporting French Officials
It is interesting to note that the Dassault Falcon 900 is actually used by the unit of the French Air Force that is responsible for transporting French state officials from place to place. Said officials would include but are not limited to the French President, the French Prime Minister, and other senior officials, meaning that the French Air Force puts a fair amount of faith in the Dassault Falcon 900 to bring people to where they want to go in a safe and reliable manner.
