Dassault Adds More Smarts to Falcon Autothrottles

Dassault flight tests so-called SmartThrottles on an experimental Falcon 7X, easing power management and enabling advanced upset recovery.

By Matt Thurber • Editor-in-Chief

February 1, 2021

Dassault’s twin-engine Rafale fighter jet is equipped with what in retrospect seems an absurdly simple design feature: a single throttle lever to control both engines. Dassault engineers had long discussed a similar application for a business jet and now the French manufacturer has conducted extensive flight tests of a single-throttle lever integrated with the three-engine Falcon 7X’s fly-by-wire digital flight control system. In late October, I had the opportunity to test-fly its SmartThrottle in the 7X flight-test aircraft and experienced another new feature that Dassault has also been testing—a full recovery mode function that can help pilots recover from a loss-of-control situation.

The flight testing that Dassault conducted on the experimental 7X revealed significant safety and operational benefits. However, the company hasn’t yet decided on when the SmartThrottle might be integrated into a new airplane. The next Falcon model is the so-called “Falcon Next,” but Dassault has not yet officially launched this program and it isn’t known yet whether this aircraft might feature the SmartThrottle and the recovery mode features that are enabled by the SmartThrottle’s integration with the fly-by-wire digital flight control system (DFCS).

The rest of this article continues for AIN Members with the full report, analysis and background. The rest of this article continues for AIN Members with the full report, analysis and background. The rest of this article continues for AIN Members with the full report, analysis and background. The rest of this article continues for AIN Members with the full report, analysis and background. The rest of this article continues for AIN Members with the full report, analysis and background.