Dassault Falcon Delivers First of Four Falcon 7X to Saudia Private Aviation for Charter Service in the Middle East
By Dassault Falcon, PRNEMonday, May 3, 2010
GENEVA, May 4, 2010 - Dassault Falcon today delivered the first of four Falcon 7X
tri-jets to Saudia Private Aviation (SPA), the business aviation unit of
Saudi Arabian Airlines marking the first Falcon 7X delivery in Saudi Arabia.
Two more aircraft are scheduled for delivery to SPA later this year and the
final aircraft will come in 2011. The order was originally announced at the
Dubai Air Show in 2007.
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SPA will use the Falcon 7X for VIP charter flights within the
Middle East and around the world. With a range of 5,950 nm, the aircraft can
connect major cities, such as New York to Riyadh, Dubai to Tokyo, or Rio De
Janeiro to Jeddah.
"It is a day of commemoration," said Wajdi Abdullah
Al-Idrissi, the Vice President Royal & VIP Affairs & Head of SPA. "The Falcon
7X was carefully chosen out of many options due to its excellent technical
specifications and performance," he said. "It is a unique plane that can fly
nonstop for over 11 hours and does not require a long runway which saves
valuable time by being able to land at lower traffic airports." Al-Idrissi
continued, "Though SPA was carved out of Saudi Arabian Airlines a year ago,
our long experience spans more than 60 years in VIP aircraft chartering,
leasing, management and consultation, and Ground Handling."
Discussing the Falcon 7X, Al-Idrissi said that this
state-of-the-art aircraft is distinctive and matchless in its class and
conforms to the high taste of their Royal and VIP clients.
"The Falcon 7X has been well received by customers in the
Middle East for its advanced technology, its efficiency as well as its
comfort," said John Rosanvallon, President and CEO of Dassault Falcon. "It is
capable of meeting the most demanding requirements of passengers, especially
on very long non-stop flights."
Dassault has approximately 50 Falcons based in the region and
expects this number to increase by almost 50% over the next three years. The
rapid growth of the Falcon fleet in the area prompted Dassault to establish a
new Falcon Spares Distribution Center in Dubai in 2008 in order to expedite
and simplify the delivery process of Falcon spares. The regional inventory is
now worth more than US $1.5 million. A sales office for the region was also
opened in Dubai in the same year.
Dassault also plans to establish an additional Falcon
Authorized Service Center in the region with Saudi Arabian Airlines in
Jeddah. "Saudi Arabian Airlines is renowned for providing a high quality of
service. Their technical experience in aviation maintenance will support not
only the expanding Falcon fleet based in the Middle East but also Falcon
operators that fly regularly between the Asia-Pacific region and Europe,"
said Rosanvallon. "Saudi Arabian Airlines is one of the leading airlines
providing maintenance services providers and is capable of offering first
class solutions to our customers."
About Dassault Falcon
Dassault Falcon is responsible for selling and supporting
Falcon business jets throughout the world. It is part of Dassault Aviation, a
leading aerospace company with a presence in over 70 countries across 5
continents. Dassault Aviation produces the Rafale fighter jet as well as a
complete line of Falcon business jets. The company has assembly and
production plants in both France and the United States and service facilities
on multiple continents. It employs a total workforce of over 12,000. Since
the rollout of the first Falcon 20 in 1963, 2000 Falcon jets have been
delivered to more than 67 countries worldwide. The family of Falcon jets
currently in production includes three tri-jets-the Falcon 900DX, 900LX and
the 7X-as well as the twin-engine 2000DX and 2000LX.
Press Contacts Dassault Aviation (France) Vadim Feldzer Tel. +33-1-47-11-44-13 Photos falconphotogallery.com (login/User ID: dassault Password: falcon)
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Press Contacts: Dassault Aviation (France) : Vadim Feldzer, Tel. +33-1-47-11-44-13 ; Marie-Alexandrine Munoz, Tel. +33-1-47-11-64-23
Tags: Dassault Falcon, Geneva, May 4, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland