Dassault Falcon Jet To Expand LR Facility By $60 Million

Dassault Falcon Jet will expand its Little Rock jet completion center over the next three years by $60 million.

The French-based company said it will add an additional 250,000 sq. ft. to its campus near the Little Rock airport and refurbish a portion of its existing facilities.

Dassault Falcon makes high-end corporate and personal jets worth up to $40 million per plane in some models.

“Little Rock has been a major part of our company identity over the last 38 years and today is the company’s largest industrial facility,” said Eric Trappier, Chairman & CEO of Dassault Aviation. “It has become our worldwide center of excellence for primary completion activities and pioneered the use of digital design in cabin completion. The new investment will not only increase capacity but enhance the overall quality and efficiency of the products we provide to our customers.”

Site preparation will begin in early 2014 and construction will take place through the early part of 2016.

The new completion facility will be state-of-the-art, with advanced tools and processes that shorten completion time and increase quality and accuracy.

“I like to say that a piece of Little Rock is always flying somewhere in the world because of the craftsmanship, ingenuity and dedication of our employees here,” said John Rosanvallon, President and CEO of Dassault Falcon Jet. “I am glad that the Dassault Aviation Board of Directors gave the green light for this major expansion and want to thank Governor Beebe, the Little Rock Airport Commission and the Arkansas Economic Development Commission for a productive exchange that ultimately led to a win-win agreement for Dassault Falcon Jet and the State of Arkansas.”

Dassault could have located the facility in another part of the U.S., but state economic officials convinced the jet manufacturer to expand its existing plant. While no new jobs are expected immediately, the demand Dassault is experiencing for its jets and the commitment of the $60 million expansion is expected to add hundreds of jobs upon completion.

“Dassault Falcon Jet is a cornerstone of Arkansas’s aviation sector, and today’s significant investment will help cement that status for many years to come,” Gov. Beebe said. “This company is a big reason that aviation products are one of our top exports, and their Little Rock employees are a big reason Dassault Falcon Jet is committed to doing business in Arkansas.”

Dassault has been in Little Rock since 1975 when its predecessor company, Falcon Jet Corp., purchased Little Rock Airmotive, a 61,500 square foot hangar and office facility, and integrated it into its global production line.

FedEx founder, Fred Smith, originally used Little Rock Airmotive as a completion center for the fleet of Falcon 20 transports that he used to launch his overnight delivery service in the early seventies.

In 2008, Dassault completed a previous 116,000 sq. ft. foot, $20 million expansion at Little Rock with the addition of a new four-bay paint hangar.

Arkansas economic officials said Dassault qualified for payroll tax rebates based on current and future employment commitments and sales tax refunds on new equipment tied to the expansion. Gov. Beebe also contributed $2 million in money from his Quick Action Closing Fund to the project.