Dassault Falcon 7X Brings Bocelli to NZ

On Tuesday 19 August, the famous singer Andrea Bocelli, who has sold more than 60 million albums since 1994, arrived in New Zealand for a one-off concert in Auckland the following day.

Television and general media reports focussed on the singer and his entourage but—to Pacific Wings readers at least—the aircraft in which Bocelli travelled to New Zealand was probably more noteworthy, as it was the first visit to the country by a Dassault Falcon 7X—the flagship of Dassault Aviation’s business jet range.

The nearest competitors for the Falcon 7X in the long-range, large-cabin business jet market are the Gulfstream 550 and Bombardier Global Express, both of which are larger.

The Falcon 7X, which has a maximum takeoff weight of just over 31 tonnes, has a range of around 5,950 nm at Mach 0.80 (with eight passengers and three crew), a balanced field takeoff length of 1,677 metres at a mission takeoff weight of 30,758 kg, and a landing distance of 690 metres at a typical landing weight of 17,367 kg.

Graeme Mollison, who was on hand for Bocelli’s arrival, will describe the Dassault Falcon 7X in more detail in a future issue of Pacific Wings.