At their Paris Air Show press conference, Dassault Aviation CEO Charles Edelstenne focused on the current state of the industry and where he sees it going from here. According to Edelstenne, “After four years of unprecedented growth in Business Aviation, our industry is now faced with a profound crisis. Nearly 17,000 jobs have already been lost at manufacturers in both North and South America.”
Speaking of the Falcon brand specifically, he said: “Despite a healthy Falcon order book, cancellations and postponements mean that we have to scale down our production rate. For the first quarter alone, we posted a negative balance of –27 orders. There is nothing in the current situation and forecasts to indicate that any significant improvement could be hoped for before the end of the year.”
The company anticipates 80 deliveries in 2009, although the present climate means that any prediction can really be nothing more than an educated guess. Despite this rather grim news, Edelstenne noted that, “on a more optimistic note, we are seeing the first signs of stabilization of the pre-owned market. In recent weeks, we have also had slightly more positive contacts with a number of existing and potential customers, but nothing has as yet been confirmed.”
In conclusion, Edelsteene noted, “There can be no doubt that after the crisis, our planes will be even more necessary than before – quite simply because they correspond to the needs of an increasingly global economy. The image problems encountered in the United States will not last as they do not reflect the real picture, which is that more than 80 percent of Business Aviation passengers are Middle Managers – including sales staff, engineers and project managers, who play a direct role in creating value.”

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