Matt Thurber, editor-in-chief at AIN Media Group, has been flying since 1975 and writing about aviation since 1978 and now has the best job in the world, running editorial operations for Aviation International News, Business Jet Traveler, and FutureFlight.aero. In addition to working as an A&amp;P mechanic on everything from Piper Cubs to turboprops, Matt taught flying at his father’s flight school in Plymouth, Mass., in the early 1980s, flew for an aircraft owner/pilot, and for two summer seasons hunted swordfish near the George’s Banks off the East Coast from a Piper Super Cub. An ATP certificated fixed-wing pilot and CFII and commercial helicopter pilot, Matt is type-rated in the Citation 500 and Gulfstream V/550. Based in the Pacific Northwest, Matt and his team cover the entire aviation scene including business aircraft, helicopters, avionics, safety, manufacturing, charter, fractionals, technology, air transport, advanced air mobility, defense, and other subjects of interest to AIN, BJT, and FutureFlight readers.

Editor-in-Chief

Matt Thurber

Dassault brought two of its latest-model business jets to the Dubai Airshow: the 6X with the largest cabin cross-section of any purpose-built business jet, and the 8X, the longest-range Falcon until the 10X enters service. The twin-engine 6X’s cabin measures 6.5 feet high and 8.5 feet wide, and cabin volume is 1,843 cu ft.
Taking advantage of its in-house flight control design and manufacturing capabilities, Dassault incorporated flaperon functionality, enabling the jet’s fly-by-wire lift-over-drag augmentation, which improves steep approach visibility, control, and comfort. While the 6X is a large airplane, it carries on the trademark Falcon handling characteristics that pilots have come to appreciate.
Dual FalconEye head-up display (HUD) systems are now available in the 6X as well as the 8X and feature Dassault’s combined vision system, which places synthetic and enhanced vision imagery on the HUD simultaneously. This helps pilots see ground and airport features through inclement weather with multi-spectral enhanced vision, while terrain and other obstacles around and behind the airport are shown with synthetic vision. With FalconEye, pilots can descend to 100 feet before switching to natural vision to acquire the airport environment and complete the landing.
The latest Honeywell EASy IV avionics suite in the 6X and 8X series includes 2D and 3D airport moving maps to enhance pilots' situational awareness on the ground, particularly at complex airports.
Since the 6X entered service nearly two years ago, more than 20 have been delivered, and they have logged more than 5,000 flight hours and 2,500 flights. Maximum range is 5,500 nm, and some flights have been more than 12 hours in duration. The 6X is powered by two Pratt &amp; Whitney PW812D turbofans.
Other recent approvals for the 6X include steep approach certification for London City and other airports with non-standard approach angles, and approval of a Class 1 crew rest area. High-altitude airport capabilities have also been certified to 14,000 feet following summer testing at La Paz, Bolivia, where the airport elevation is 13,325 feet.
The three-engine Falcon 8X can fly 6,450 nm and has demonstrated its short-field capability with a coast-to-coast flight from Santa Monica, California’s 3,500-foot runway to Teterboro near New York City.
SpaceX’s Starlink low-earth-orbit, high-speed satellite communications system is now available on the 8X, along with geostationary orbit airborne connectivity systems.
To support the growing Falcon fleet, Dassault has added more mobile service teams in North America. It also opened a 250,000-sq-ft service center in Melbourne, Florida, in October and has prepared its Dubai-based ExecuJet MRO service center to accommodate the 10X when it enters service in 2027.

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