Dassault Falcon 20

Updated: October 2026 – A slim, slightly old-fashioned twinjet sweeps across the field, the engines sound rougher than on modern business jets, and strange pods hang under the wings: you may well be looking at a Dassault Falcon 20. It started the Falcon family in 1963, Federal Express built its night network with it in 1973 – and as a target aircraft for armed forces it still flies today. Here you learn how to identify the classic, which variants exist and where you still have any chance of a sighting at all.

What is the Dassault Falcon 20?

The Falcon 20 is a twin-jet business travel jet from Dassault Aviation and at the same time the first member of the Falcon family, which today includes long-range jets like the Falcon 8X. In France the aircraft was first called the Mystère 20 – a nod to the Mystère fighters that had made Dassault known in the 1950s. Depending on the configuration, the cabin seats up to 14 passengers, with around ten seats typical.

Dassault approved the project in the early 1960s. The prototype with the registration F-WLKB took off on May 4, 1963 at Bordeaux-Mérignac, at that time still with Pratt & Whitney JT12 jet engines. In July 1964 it flew for the first time with the General Electric CF700, which became the standard for the series. In June 1965 type certification followed in France and the US. In the same month the French pilot Jacqueline Auriol set a speed record with the prototype – a PR success for the young program.

The Falcon 20 was built from 1965 to 1988. Together with the Falcon 200 development, around 500 aircraft were produced; the exact numbers vary slightly depending on the source because prototypes and special versions are counted differently. Customers came from business, from government agencies and from numerous air forces.

Pan Am and the “Fan Jet Falcon”

Dassault owes the fact that the French business jet became a worldwide success mainly to one partner: Pan American World Airways. Dassault had no sales network of its own in the US and was looking for a dealer for the American continent. In 1963 Pan Am first ordered 40 aircraft and secured options on 120 more. By 1967 firm orders had grown to around 160 aircraft.

Pan Am marketed the aircraft in North and South America as the “Fan Jet Falcon,” and the US aircraft were outfitted at a Pan Am facility in Burbank. The name caught on: the Fan Jet Falcon became the Falcon 20, and “Falcon” became the brand for all of Dassault’s business jets – to this day. If you want to get to know the family, you will find the direct successor in the three-engine Falcon 50 and the modern twinjet heir in the Falcon 2000.

The three features that are enough to identify it

The Falcon 20 is not a big aircraft, and the differences from other business jets of the 1960s and 1970s are subtle. Three observations will still put you reliably on the right track.

This combination reliably separates the Falcon 20 from most types. As always, the final confirmation comes from the registration, with which you can look up year of manufacture, variant and operator. How to read and assign registrations is explained in the guide Understanding aircraft registrations.

The variants at a glance

Over a quarter century of production, Dassault improved the Falcon 20 again and again. For spotters this matters because the versions differ partly on the outside, but above all in their registration history.

Variant	Special feature	Engine
Falcon 20C	first production version	CF700
Falcon 20D / 20E	more powerful engine versions	CF700
Falcon 20F	improved high-lift devices on the wing leading edge, more fuel	CF700
Falcon 20-5 (C-5, D-5, E-5, F-5)	retrofitted aircraft	Garrett TFE731
Falcon 20G / HU-25 Guardian	maritime surveillance, US Coast Guard	Garrett ATF3
Falcon 200	last civilian development, first flight 1980, longer range	Garrett ATF3
Falcon 20DC	freighter conversion with a large cargo door, e.g. for Federal Express	CF700

More than 100 Falcon 20s received the more economical Garrett TFE731 over the years; the last retrofit kits were sold around 2005. The Falcon 200 and the military Falcon 20G, by contrast, used the Garrett ATF3, an engine with an unusual design and its own nacelle shape. The Falcon 30 is a curiosity, an enlarged version for around 30 passengers: it flew as a prototype in 1973 but never entered series production.

The FedEx story: how a business jet invented the overnight express

For many aviation fans the Falcon 20 is above all one thing: Federal Express’s first aircraft. On April 17, 1973 the young company launched its regular overnight operation from Memphis – with 14 Falcon 20s connecting 25 US cities. According to the company, there were 186 shipments on the first night. From this modest start grew the hub at Memphis Airport, today one of the largest cargo airports in the world.

The FedEx aircraft were no ordinary business jets. For freight service they received, as the Falcon 20DC, a large cargo door at the front, a reinforced cabin floor and plugged windows. Each aircraft cost around 1.2 million US dollars at the time. The fleet grew to a good 30 examples.

The switch to larger aircraft was made possible only by the US Airline Deregulation Act of 1977, which lifted the restrictions on all-cargo airlines. FedEx Express then bought the first Boeing 727-100s, which became the new backbone of the fleet. The Falcons stayed on in feeder service for a few more years and were retired in 1985. How the express services’ business model has developed since is covered in the article on the integrators DHL, FedEx and UPS.

Target duty and electronic warfare

Perhaps its most exciting second life is the Falcon 20’s service with armed forces – though mostly without military national markings. Several air forces used Falcon 20s with special equipment for electronic warfare, for example Norway and Spain, which retired their aircraft in 2022 and 2015 respectively. According to available overviews, the Pakistani air force continues to use modified Falcon 20s in this role.

Particularly well known are the civilian service providers who fly on behalf of the military:

• In Great Britain, Draken Europe operates a fleet of around 15 heavily modified Falcon 20s. The company emerged in 2020 from Cobham’s flight services division in Bournemouth, which in turn traces back to FR Aviation. The Falcons simulate hostile threats and tow target bodies so that navy, air force and army can train realistically.
• In France, the service provider AvDef (Aviation Défense Service) uses Falcon 20s for target towing, jamming missions and test flights for the French armed forces.

Typical of these target aircraft are pods under the wings – jammers, sensors or winches for towed targets – as well as additional antennas on the fuselage. Anyone who sees such an aircraft knows at once that no business traveler is on board. How to keep an eye on military and government flights online is in the guide Tracking military aircraft online. Converted Learjet 35/36s, by the way, often have a comparable mission profile.

Government, research and cargo: other uses

Besides target duty and cargo, the Falcon 20 has filled many niches:

• US Coast Guard: From 1982 the Coast Guard received 41 HU-25 Guardians based on the Falcon 20G. The last one retired in September 2014 after 32 years.
• French Navy: The maritime surveillance version Falcon 200 Gardian flew mainly in the overseas territories in the Pacific. According to French reports it is being replaced by the Falcon 50M by around 2027.
• Government and VIP transport: Belgium used two Falcon 20s until December 2016, Canada operated the type as the CC-117 from 1970 to 1989, Australia from 1967 to 1989.
• Research: The German Aerospace Center (DLR) operates a Falcon 20E in Oberpfaffenhofen as a flying measurement laboratory for atmospheric and climate research.
• Cargo in the US: According to available overviews, several US on-demand freight operators still fly Falcon 20s – for example for urgent parts that cannot wait for a scheduled flight.

Falcon 20, HS 125 or Learjet 35?

The most common mix-ups happen with other classic business jets with tail-mounted engines. The finder helps you narrow it down.

You can find more details on the British competition on the page for the HS 125. For an overview of how to tell Gulfstream, Global, Falcon, Citation and Challenger apart in general, see the guide Telling business jet types apart.

Where you can still find the Falcon 20 today

Honestly: in Germany, Austria and Switzerland the Falcon 20 is a rarity. In regular business travel it plays practically no role anymore. Your chances depend on special cases.

Place / occasion	Chance of a hit	Why
Military exercises in the North Sea and English Channel	low to medium	British and French target aircraft support exercises
Oberpfaffenhofen research airport	low	DLR measurement aircraft, missions follow a campaign schedule
Great Britain (Bournemouth area)	medium	Home of the Draken Europe fleet
USA	medium	On-demand freighters and charter operators
Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington	certain	The first FedEx Falcon as a museum exhibit

Because missions can hardly be planned, tracking helps: target aircraft are often visible via ADS-B, and their registrations are well known among spotters. How to follow individual aircraft is explained in the article Flight tracking with ADS-B. And how to judge how special your sighting really is is covered in the guide Spotting rare aircraft.

Photo tips for the Falcon 20

The Falcon 20 is small, quick through the frame and often there unexpectedly. A few points help you not to waste the rare subject.

When the sun is right at your location, you can calculate with the guide Planning the sun position for your photo spot. General tips on spotting business aircraft are in the article Spotting business jets, and anyone interested in freighter versions will find answers in the guide Identifying cargo aircraft.

Common mix-ups and how to rule them out

If you love classics in general, the guide Identifying historic aircraft helps you place other vintage types.

Conclusion

The Falcon 20 is an aircraft with three lives: first a business travel jet and the founder of the Falcon family brand, then the launch fleet of Federal Express’s overnight network, finally a workhorse for target duty, research and cargo. You can recognize it by the cruciform tail, smooth wingtips and two tail-mounted engines. The real challenge is getting one in front of your lens at all.