The Rafale is selling well and this is benefiting Dassault Aviation. The French group won record contracts for its combat aircraft last year. It records nearly 21 billion euros in orders and Dassault must now deliver 164 Rafales.
After a prosperous year in 2021 in terms of combat aircraft orders, Dassault is continuing its momentum. The order book was again well filled in 2022 with 92 more Rafales to be delivered, including 80 for the United Arab Emirates alone. Dassault Aviation can also count on new potential contracts this year: 26 aircraft for the Indian Navy, Colombia is also interested. And France should order a new batch of 42 planes.
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As for longer-term projects, Dassault also confirmed in December 2022 an agreement with Airbus to create the fighter of the future.
On the business jet market side, the group is aiming for the entry into service of a new Falcon in mid-2023. A market still very active even if it had started a slowdown at the end of last year. The use of private jets, much criticized for its significant Co² emissions, has increased by 16% in three years in Europe.
On this subject, the CEO of Dassault Aviation, Eric Trappier predicts that private jets would switch to alternative fuels faster than commercial jets.
To meet all these orders, the main difficulty for the French group remains the tensions in the supply chain. Shortages of raw materials and the energy crisis have particularly affected its Falcon production.