Dassault Falcon 8X Starts Flight Test Campaign Since rolling out the Dassault Falcon 8X, French airframer Dassault Falcon has not commenced the flight test campaign for this aircraft until now. The first flight occurred approximately seven weeks after the famed fanfare of the roll-out ceremony. The initial flight did not last that long, starting around 2 pm in the afternoon leaving the Bordeaux Mérignac Airport. The test business jet, piloted by Eric Gérard and Hervé Laverne returned about an hour and three-quarters later. The Dassault Falcon 8X flight test campaign will be joined by two other aircraft in the coming months and expected to last for 500 hours. The third test jet, S/N 03 will have a full interior cabin to the finished standards to be outfitted at the completions facility in Little Rock, Arkansas. The initial flight was done to test basic handling and maneuvering eventually it climbed all the way to 40,000 feet and did Mach 0.80. For more information: Dassault Falcon Jet Corporation Teterboro Airport 200 Riser Road Little Ferry, NJ 07643 www.dassaultfalcon.com ***