Didier Raynard, Dassault Civil Aircraft Sales Director for Australasia and South-east Asia, analyses the impact of COVID-19 on the international business aviation industry and outlines Dassault's contribution toward fighting the pandemic.
With the world in the throes of a medical and economic crisis of historic proportions, sector after sector of the global economy has been thrown into turmoil, and the business aviation segment has been no exception.
Following an initial pick-up in demand for charters in the December-February period, as commercial airlines cut capacity, the number of business jet flights has steadily declined as countries around the world have restricted international air travel.
Among the restrictions business jet operators have had to deal with are quarantine requirements. Even if an operator is permitted to fly, personnel must go into quarantine–usually for 14 days–upon arrival.
As long as restrictions on international air travel remain in place,the number of business aviation flights will continue to be relatively low.
In the meantime, companies like Dassault Aviation are adapting and doing everything possible to continue supporting critical operations around the world around the clock, while of course adhering closely to public health precautions and government directives.
Work teams have been kept operational by rotating shifts and tele-working, while observing strict sanitary procedures. Maintenance, repair and overhaul services, spare parts delivery and other key support functions remain available.
The business aviation sector is also adjusting its offerings to meet the changing structure of demand.This includes private operators as well as the government agencies and military users who operate business jets in multi role applications.
Falcon business jets,for instance, are being employed in a wide variety of missions, including emergency medical evacuation, that not only can not be shutdown during epidemics like the coronavirus, but also are essential in helping combat them.
Dassault Aviation has made two of its company-owned Falcon business jets available to the French Defence Ministry as part of the Operation Resilience mission intended to supply logistics and medical support for civilian coronavirus control activities.
The first mission, involving the two aircraft, took place in early April. It brought a team of 26 doctors and other medical personnel from Brest, Brittany, where they had been deployed for an emergency evacuation mission, back to their home base in Paris.
The two Dassault aircraft, a Falcon 8X and a Falcon 900, are operated by Dassault Falcon Service (DFS), a subsidiary of Dassault Aviation specialising in maintenance and flight operations, based at Le Bourget airport.
Another aircraft, a company-owned Falcon 7X, has been moving medical teams for Aviation Sans Frontières (Aviation without Borders). A total of more than 60 emergency medical workers have been transported to date.
Numerous private Falcon operators around the world have also made their business jets available for various tasks necessary to support vital relief efforts.
It is comforting to see the business aviation community–manufacturers, suppliers, operators–rising to the challenge and mobilising around the world to bring vital aid to where it’s most needed.