DASSAULT AVIATION'S HIGHLY ANTICIPATED ROLL-OUT

In a first virtual socially distance rollout, the 6X, said to have the largest cabin cross section of any purpose-built business jet had its debut

- AYUSHEE CHAUDHARY

UNCERTAINTY AND INNOVATION IS QUITE AT THE HEART OF the aviation industry and challenges always find a way in different forms but no one saw a crisis coming their way that would so significantly disrupt activities and industries. However, the aviation industry which remains one of the most affected has continued to stand resilient. The recent example of that is the French manufacturer Dassault Aviation that rolled out its much anticipated Falcon 6X virtually.

As the final assembly team at Dassault Aviation in Bordeaux-Merignac (France) opened the doors of Charles Lindbergh Hall on December 8, 2020, the world witnessed the company’s newest and most advanced aircraft, the Falcon 6X.

Aircraft companies expect challenges (usually engineering related) on the path to rollout and first flight but Dassault could not have anticipated the disruption of a global pandemic that arrived out of the blue in March 2020, the manufacturer stated in a release. As the world grappled with the first wave of the crisis, work for quite some time paused and the timeline to a year-end rollout was in doubt but the buoyancy of the company and the partners rose above the obstacles to put the program back on track.

“We have faced an unprecedented challenge, but working with our partners up and down the supply chain, we have been resilient,” said Dassault Aviation Chairman and CEO Eric Trappier at business aviation’s first socially distanced, live-streamed rollout.