Dassault is about to receive certification of a “nose-up autobrake” feature to further cut Falcon 2000 series landing distances, chief test pilot Philippe Deleume told AIN here at EBACE 2010. The result is a landing distance approximately 150 feet shorter. The new system will help the aircraft (in its DX, EX and LX versions) meet London City airport requirements.

“The system is transparent to the pilot,” Deleume explained. During the approach, the crew just has to activate the autobrake with an additional button near the landing gear controls. Braking then starts as soon as the main landing gear (where the brakes are) touches down, some 1 to 1.5 seconds earlier than the usual procedure. The distance gain is “on the order of 150 feet,” but Deleume emphasized that this should not be considered a precise, published number.

The pilot normally waits for the nosewheel to touch down before braking, otherwise his workload would not be properly spread over the landing phase. With the autobrake, “it is like landing with the brake pedals pushed,” Deleume said, which is not a problem thanks to the antiskid. As soon as the pilot pushes the pedals, the autobrake stops working so the pilot brakes normally.

Certification testing is complete and Dassault expects to receive the EASA’s official nod in “a matter of days,” Deleume said. For a pilot already rated in the type, training is limited to a 10-minute ground course and one approach in a simulator. Passengers will feel the same deceleration (0.4g) as in a conventional high-performance landing.

The next step for Dassault is to have the Falcon 2000DX/EX/LX approved into London City. These models are already certified for steep approaches (up to 5.5 degrees). Due to the way landing distances are calculated, the steeper approach reduces landing distance by another 150 feet (again, this is approximate). The final flight tests–at London City– are planned for this month to obtain the approval from the airport authorities.

The autobrake system will be fitted as standard during production and will be available for retrofit. The additional hardware consists of one button and two redundant printed circuits.