November 19, 2002 Dassault To Reduce Falcon Biz Jet Production

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By Brenda Carol, Newswriter

Weak demand for aircraft has prompted Dassault to cut production of its Falcon business jets for next year. The company currently has a backlog of 159 aircraft, according to Dassault Chairman/CEO Charles Edelstenne. The current rate of deliveries will continue until mid-2003, and then production will be cut to five aircraft per month, down from the current rate of six or seven. "The U.S. economy is not recovering, Europe is lagging and we fear a [more serious] global crisis, the worst environment we could think of," Edelstenne said. "The time is ripe to demonstrate how flexible Dassault is."