French To Use Falcon 8X As Special Missions Platform The Dassault Falcon 8X is the current flagship of the Falcon family of business jets. The French Armed Forces - French Armament General Directorate (DGA), is looking to acquire three of these jets not for a VIP role but modified for their special missions purposes. Specifically, for Signal Intelligence duties (SIGINT). Below is a rendering of how the Falcon 8X would look as modified for this role.
Thales said, "the information collected by the systems will then be analyzed by monitoring and intelligence specialists and fed into armed forces databases." Thales continued by saying, "the programme also includes a ground-based training platform. Through this new programme, the French armed forces will once again rely on Thales’s expertise to significantly enhance their SIGINT capabilities, and will gain a crucial advantage through a better understanding of the strategic environment." Looking at the rendering the most prominent visible modification is the bulged sensor under the forward fuselage. The sensor that has been developed can monitor both radio and radar emissions, the first time that simultaneously monitoring radio and radar signals has been possible. The French Air Force is familiar with using Dassault's business jet products for various roles and the Falcon 8X is an obvious choice for them. For more information: Dassault Falcon Jet Corporation Teterboro Airport 200 Riser Road Little Ferry, NJ 07643 www.dassaultfalcon.com ***
