By: Dave Majumdar Washington DC
12:00 3 Jun 2013 Source:FLIGHT
Dassault is planning to expand its completion center in Little Rock, Arkansas, in anticipation of the company’s new Falcon SMS business jet, which will be unveiled later this year.
“Our next step in the Falcon family is an airplane – the code name is SMS – and that’s really why we needed to extend our presence here,” says John Rosanvallon, president and chief executive of Dassault‘s Falcon Jet division. “This brand new Falcon will be introduced at the next NBAA [National Business Aviation Association] convention in Las Vegas [Nevada] in October and we believe it will be the best Falcon yet.”
Over the next three years, Rosanvallon says Dassault will invest $60 million in new construction and the refurbishment of its existing facilities in Little Rock.
The construction will add 250,000 sq ft (23,225 sq m) to the factory’s 1 million sq ft of floor space. The project will also include refurbishments of the cabinet, upholstery and headliner shops and upgrades to older hangars.
Site preparation for the work will start in early 2014 and construction will be undertaken through the early part of 2016.
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Dassault Falcon Jet recently delivered its first Falcon 2000S in Brazil following certification by ANAC, Brazil’s aviation regulatory authority, late last year.