Dassault is working on a virtually paperless cockpit for Falcons. The goal, AIN understands, is to limit the amount of paper to just a few aircraft performance graphs.
The solution could comprise two CMC CMA 1100 electronic flight bags (EFBs) and, as a backup, one iPad and significantly reduced print documentation, Philippe Conchon, operational performance tool manager for Falcons, told AIN. The crew currently has to carry 64 pounds of paper as a backup in an EFB-equipped cockpit.
Dassault recently integrated the Falcon Sphere flight software suite into the aircraft’s EFBs. The system includes weight-and-balance, takeoff and landing performance modules, which make it easy to update the runway performance calculation if one parameter, such as boarding an extra passenger, changes at the last minute, Conchon said.
Falcon Sphere uses Windows XP/7/8, which allows Dassault to consider offering a tablet-based EFB in future, as opposed to the aircraft-attached CMA 1100. TAG Aviation has already adopted an iPad-based EFB on the Falcon 7X.
Used as a backup, the onboard iPad features Flight Doc, an app that synchronizes with the Falcon Customer Portal, through which it retrieves the latest flight documentation revisions, Falcon Service Advisories and Falcon Service Newsflashes. So far, the resource has been available only through the website.
AIN understands Dassault is working on the technology with the French civil aviation authority (DGAC). The DGAC did not answer AIN’s specific question on business aircraft EFBs but said tablets might replace all print documentation, except the quick-reference handbook (QRH) as a backup. The QRH, usually a small-form, spiral-bound book, essentially summarizes abnormality response procedures.
