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Flying The Gulfstream G650
photo: Dassault AviationMonday, Charles Edelstenne, Dassault Aviation’s chairman and CEO, announced the Falcon 2000S, a thorough update of Falcon 2000DX, that will compete against Bombardier Challenger 300, Gulfstream G250, Hawker 4000 and Embraer Legacy 500 in the super midsize business jet segment.Priced at $25-million, the 3,350 nm range Falcon 2000S will be a scant one percent more costly than Challenger 300, but $1-million higher than G250 and topping Hawker 4000's price tag by $3-million. For the extra money, buyers will get the largest volume cabin, the best runway performance, true full tanks / full seats loading flexibility and very competitive operating costs.In other words, they'll get large cabin aircraft capabilities in a Falcon that's priced close to the super midsized class. Dassault is introducing the aircraft right at the time that large cabin aircraft sales are resurging and super midsize sales remain flat. That's going to make it a very tough competitor -- if Dassault can hold down price increases after the first 20 aircraft are sold.Falcon 2000S also suggest that the term "Falcon SMS" is Dassault's smoke screen for its new twin-engine Falcon development program. Edelstenne said that “.... The SMS program is progressing as expected, with 400 engineers from our design office and partners in St Cloud, close to a thousand worldwide. The program is on track for our target of a 2016 Entry into service.” Dassault has said it needs a 10,000 lb thrust class engine for this aircraft, far more powerful than what would be needed for a 3,000-nm range class SMS.The new aircraft, as a result, will be its biggest ever twin-engine Falconjet. Expect it to be a large cabin aircraft based on Falcon 7X, sharing its wing contours, fuselage design and digital fly-by-wire system. To be competitive with G450 and Global 5000, it will need a range of at least 4,500-plus nm at 0.80 Mach. Similar to Falcon 7X, it will cruise efficiently at 0.85 Mach on shorter missions.
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