KEY FIGURES OF DASSAULT AVIATION GROUP
2023
2022
Order intake
EUR 8,253 million
60 Rafale
of which 42 France and 18 Export
23 Falcon
EUR 20,954 million
92 Rafale
of which 92 Export
64 Falcon
Adjusted net sales (*)
EUR 4,801 million
13 Rafale
of which 11 France and 2 Export
26 Falcon
EUR 6,929 million
14 Rafale
of which 13 Export and 1 France
32 Falcon
Backlog
as of December 31
EUR 38,508 million
211 Rafale
of which 141 Export and 70 France
84 Falcon
EUR 35,008 million
164 Rafale
of which 125 Export and 39 France
87 Falcon
Adjusted operating income(*)
Adjusted operating margin
EUR 349 million
7.3% of net sales
EUR 572 million
8.3% of net sales
Self-funded Research and Development
EUR 483 million
10.1% of net sales
EUR 572 million
8.3% of net sales
Adjusted net income (*)
Adjusted net margin
Earnings per share
EUR 886 million
18.5% of net sales
EUR 10.95 per share
EUR 830 million
12.0% of net sales
EUR 9.99 per share
Available cash
as of December 31
EUR 7,294 million
EUR 9,529 million
Dividends
EUR 266 million
EUR 3.37 per share
EUR 249 million
EUR 3.00 per share
Employee profit-sharing and incentives including 20% employer’s corresponding tax
Headcount as of December 31
EUR 170 million
13,533
EUR 210 million
12,768
NB: Dassault Aviation recognizes Rafale Export contracts in their entirety (including the Thales and Safran parts).
Main IFRS aggregates (see reconciliation table below)
(*) Consolidated net sales
EUR 4,805 million
EUR 6,950 million
(*) Consolidated operating income
EUR 349 million
EUR 591 million
(*) Consolidated net income
EUR 693 million
EUR 716 million
Saint-Cloud, March 6th 2024 – The Board of Directors held yesterday and chaired by Mr. Éric Trappier approved the 2023 statement of accounts. The audit procedures have been completed and the audit opinion is in the process of being issued.
“The Group’s backlog continues to increase, driven by the commercial success of the Rafale. It stands at EUR 38.5 billion as of December 31, 2023 (295 aircraft – 141 Rafale Export, 70 Rafale France and 84 Falcon). Post-closing of the 2023 financial statements, the backlog increased with the entry into force in January 2024 of the third batch of 18 Rafale of the Indonesian contract. A total of 495 Rafale have thus been ordered since the beginning of the program.
Certification of the Falcon 6X by EASA and FAA (type certificate) has been approved on August 22nd, 2023, the entry into service of the aircraft including the application of post certification upgrades happened on November 30th 2023. The first delivery took place in February 2024.
13 Rafale and 26 Falcon were delivered, versus a guidance of 15 and 35, due to supply chain issues and the delayed entry into service of Falcon 6X.
Group’s Revenues for this year stood at EUR 4.8 billion, leading to an adjusted EBIT of EUR 349 million and a record breaking adjusted net result of EUR 886 million, representing 18.5% of net sales.
In 2023, the international context deteriorated, marked by the ongoing war in Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East. France adopted an ambitious Military Procurement Law (Loi de Programmation Militaire – LPM), which allocates a budget of EUR 413 billion for the 2024-2030 period (representing an increase of 40% compared to the previous LPM). For Dassault Aviation, the LPM provides for the ongoing deliveries of the Rafale program fourth batch, the coming into force of the 42 aircraft of the fifth batch (20 of which are to be delivered from 2027 to 2030), the completion by 2027 of the Rafale Standard F4, the negotiation and beginning of Rafale Standard F5 which should come along with the development of a combat drone.
Supply chain issues that arose during the Covid crisis continue to have a severe impact on sub-contractors in the aviation industry, which are not always able to deliver the required quality or meet deadlines. Certain supplier weaknesses, coupled with capacity shortages, mainly in aerostructure, resulted for the Group in delays in production start-ups. While these risks will continue to weigh on the Group’s business in 2024, Dassault Aviation has implemented a centralized steering plan to introduce corrective measures, provide the necessary support to certain sub-contractors and develop “Make in India.”
The Paris Le Bourget Air Show was held in June 2023. This trade show allowed Dassault Aviation to once again showcase the efforts it has undertaken to decarbonize its processes and products, and those that it will continue to pursue in the years to come. The Group is committed to its decarbonization: the Falcon aircraft are certified to fly with Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) blends with kerosene up to 50%. Today’s available alternative fuels (SAF) offer a carbon emission reduction’s rate in the range of 80% to 90% compared to conventional kerosene. All Dassault Aviation flights, including those in the United States, are using 30% SAF blends which are the only ones available on the market today. 413 flights have been operated in 2023 by Dassault Aviation with 30% SAF blends (vs. 179 in 2022). Aircraft models currently under production will be compatible with 100% SAF blends by 2030 (Falcon 10X natively).
In the military sector, 2023 saw:
the order by France for 42 Rafale placed in December 2023 under the country’s new Military Procurement Law which was adopted in July 2023,
the addition to the backlog of the second batch of 18 Rafale under the Indonesian contract (followed on January 8, 2024 by the entry into force of a third batch of 18 aircraft),
the delivery of 11 Rafale to France,
the delivery of 2 new Rafale to Greece, as well as 6 pre-owned Rafale,
the continuation of development work on the Rafale F4 standard and the FCAS, for which Dassault Aviation is leader for the NGF demonstrator,
the continuation of work on the Eurodrone contract. Dassault Aviation is responsible in particular for flight controls and mission communications as a sub-contractor,
in the field of military support, the Group has met the availability commitments of its operational maintenance contracts (Ravel for the Rafale, Ocean for the ATL2 and Balzac for the Mirage 2000), and participated in “High Intensity” warfare exercises with the French forces. At the end of December, a new verticalized maintenance contract was notified: “Alphacare” for the Alpha Jet. Moreover, support for fleets in service for Export customers continued as close as possible to operations.
In the civil aviation segment, 23 Falcon were ordered and 26 Falcon were delivered in 2023, compared with a guidance of 35.
The year also saw:
the continuation of development efforts on the Falcon 6X and 10X:
The Falcon 6X was certified on August 22, 2023 and entered into service on November 30, 2023. Prospection has been stepped up, notably thanks to a demonstration aircraft. The flights operated allowed the first customers to confirm the cabin’s very high level of comfort. The ramp up of production also continued, in a challenging supply chain context,
the first Falcon 10X (development aircraft) is currently being built. The program schedule has been adjusted and the first deliveries are scheduled for 2027.
the expansion of the network of service centers, notably with the opening of the service center in Dubai (to replace the previous center).
Social and environmental responsibility was reflected in 2023 through:
the Company’s commitment to the environment and to the decarbonization of its Falcon aircraft, in particular with:
significant results for the Parent Company’s energy saving plan which was launched at the end of 2022: -10.4% of energy consumption per hour worked,
the ramp-up of the “SAF plan” which set an ambitious target for the use of SAF for its internal flights (413 flights operated with “30% SAF” blends in 2023 compared with 179 in 2022),
the entry into service of the flight plan optimization tool FalconWays.
a major recruitment drive and an attractive employment model in which – true to the ideals of Serge and Marcel Dassault – value sharing is a core part of its DNA with notably:
almost 2,000 new hires, including 200 apprentices, in a tight labor market,
based on the 2023 profits, profit-sharing and incentives reached EUR 170 million (for employees of the Group’s French companies , including the corresponding employer’s tax) compared with the minimum legal profit-sharing of EUR 8 million.
2024 Objectives:
Deliver Rafale and Falcon,
Meet our schedule and cost commitments for Falcon and military developments,
Availability and support for our aircraft: maintain satisfaction levels among our military customers and regain our position as leader in business aviation support rankings,
Get a contract for the F5 standard preliminary studies,
FCAS / NGF: continue developing the demonstrator,
Make in India: ramp up the activities transferred to India,
Continue Rafale Export business development and increase Falcon sales efforts,
CSR: integrate new hires, continue our recruitment efforts and our action to reduce our environmental impact.
2024 Guidance
We forecast an increase in Group’s revenue for 2024 compared to 2023, EUR 6 Billion range (of which deliveries of 35 Falcon and 20 Rafale).