Dassault is marking this year's return to LABACE of its newest member of the Falcon family, the 8X, with Brazilian certification in hand and the first several deliveries under way. The 8X made its Latin America debut during LABACE last year just a few months after received U.S. FAA and EASA certification in June 2016. The French manufacturer quietly obtained ANAC approval last fall, clearing the way for Brazilian registration of the trijet.

Brazil has proved to be a key market for the launch of the aircraft program with three of the aircraft already handed over to customers in the region and a fourth on the cusp of delivery leading up to LABACE. By mid-June, Dassault had delivered nine of the aircraft worldwide.

Entering service in October 2016, the fleet has accumulated more than 1,700 hours and 675 flight cycles in the first eight months of operation, and Dassault has added approvals for London City approaches and its optional FalconEye combined vision system.

Based on Dassault’s 7X, the aircraft incorporates a lighter, redesigned wing with new winglets, more thrust, additional fuel capacity and reinforced landing gear that support its 6,450-nm range. In addition to being the longest-range Falcon, the 8X is also the longest Falcon, with an overall length of 80.2 feet and a cabin length of 42.67 feet, not including baggage.

Dassault is extending the maintenance intervals for both the 8X and the 7X. The 1A intervals have already been extended from nine months/600 hours to 12 months/800 hours, and 2A went from 18 months, 1,200 hours to 24 months 1,600 hours. In progress is an effort to extend 4A intervals from 36 to 48 months. That extension is targeted for next year.

Similar extensions are under way for other Falcons, including the 2000 series, from their either eight- or six-month intervals to multiples of 12-month intervals for 1A-4A maintenance.

In addition to displaying the 8X, Dassault also brings its Falcon 2000S to LABACE. The 2000 program has been Falcon’s most successful to date with 600 delivered. The first Brazilian-registered 2000S was handed over in early 2014, following ANAC certification.

Latin America overall has been a slower for new aircraft sales, accounting for 8 percent of gross Falcon orders between 2014 and 2016. But Mexico has been a bright spot and the company has had successes in Brazil.

In fact, the Brazilian market has been so important to Dassault that it opened its first company-owned service center outside of the U.S. and Europe at Sorocaba Airport near São Paulo in 2009. Part of the Dassault Aircraft Services (DAS) Falcon Jet service center network, the Sorocaba center has been a line service center that provides AOG support, maintenance inspections, line and engine maintenance, along with FBO services and hangar space. The center has been servicing roughly 80 AOG unscheduled events per year, along with about 15,000 hours of Falcon maintenance. Dassault has continuously added repair capabilities and in recent years added a further $3 million to its spares inventory. DAS is exploring further possibilities for expansion of its services and capabilities at the center, “Falcon do Brasil.”

“We’ve got some good things in mind” for growth there, said Mark Ozenick, the turnaround and startup specialist who joined DAS earlier this year as president.

That review is part of a larger multi-pronged initiative ongoing throughout the DAS network as the company strives to enhance customer relationships, build on its quality and increase capacity. The company is looking a potential capacity enhancements throughout the network, tightening coordination between the centers, and investing in training, equipment and software. This also being done with an eye on improving the customer experience, responsiveness and cost of ownership. The increased in inventory and new maintenance intervals are a few of a number of the efforts in the works for Falcon support.