Air Enthusiast 1972-03
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??? - Mercure: a Short-Haul Gamble
The first prototype Mercure will be joined by a second aircraft in mid-1972, incorporating all the modifications found to be necessary in the course of test flying since May 1971.
The full range of Dassault commercial aircraft comprising, in addition to the Mercure, the Falcon 20 (extreme right), the Falcon 10 (left foreground) and the Falcon 20T, a full-scale mock-up of which is shown upper left.
The Mercure 01 on its first flight. Since this picture was taken, dihedral has been introduced on the tailplane and other modifications have been made.
The Mercure 01 at take-off.
The Mercure flight deck is laid out to permit two-crew operation, with radio and navaids grouped in the overhead panel.
Two of the projects studied by Dassault before embarking on the Mercure were (upper) the Mediterranee and (lower) the Mystere 30, which was later renamed Mercure.