Electric aircraft are really real and the Embraer E2 family is complete. Plus a ton of good news for Airbus and an incremental eventual win for inflight connectivity.
Main Content
Panasonic Avionics confirms Eutelsat 10B as second XTS satellite partner
Panasonic Avionics (PAC) plans a significant boost to its Ku-band satellite capacity from 2022. The company confirmed a contract for multiple gigahertz of capacity on both multi-beam payloads of the Eutelsat 10B satellite slated for launch in three years.
Qantas selects A350-1000 for Project Sunrise
A slightlyy modified version of the Airbus A350-1000(ULR) is the aircraft of choice for Qantas as it inches closer to its “Project Sunrise” plans for nonstop flights between Sydney and London or New York City. But neither the business plan nor aircraft order are finalized yet. Negotiations with pilots over work rules are the sticking point now.
PaxEx Premium News
A new player in the race for inflight WiFi over India
The race to bring the first aircraft online in India took an interesting turn in recent weeks. While SpiceJet has talked about its plans to add the GX Aviation system from Inmarsat to its new 737 MAX aircraft other players have been less public about their efforts. But installations are underway to deliver a fleet-wide solution, potentially within a year.
Global Eagle signs with Turkish Airlines for inflight connectivity
Adding more than 100 Turkish Airlines planes to its inflight connectivity backlog is good news for Global Eagle. Perhaps more significant, however, is the potential for additional program growth that come from the partnerships it established to secure this Turkish Airlines deal.
Gogo talking Ka as growth opportunities abound
For a company that is now mostly known for its Ku-band inflight connectivity offering the idea of bringing Ka-band services online in parallel may appear somewhat incongruous. But for Gogo, the news out this morning that it is pitching Ka-band solutions to potential customers is, according to CEO Oakleigh Thorne, more about holding fast to its plans.
IFEC
An electrified experience: PaxEx Update – 13 Dec 2019
Electric aircraft are really real and the Embraer E2 family is complete. Plus a ton of good news for Airbus and an incremental eventual win for inflight connectivity.
Panasonic Avionics confirms Eutelsat 10B as second XTS satellite partner
Panasonic Avionics (PAC) plans a significant boost to its Ku-band satellite capacity from 2022. The company confirmed a contract for multiple gigahertz of capacity on both multi-beam payloads of the Eutelsat 10B satellite slated for launch in three years.
Air France to swap A380, A340 fleets for A350 with expanded order
Air France will add ten more A350-900 aircraft to its fleet in the coming years, supporting the retirement of its A380s and A340s. The deal will help the carrier to simplify its operations and deliver a more consistent passenger experience across its long-haul operations.
Putting AirAsia’s new GX WiFi to the test
Deploy quickly and work out the bugs along the way. That’s not a typical approach to anything in the aviation world, and for good reason. But for AirAsia’s GX Aviation WiFi deployment that’s the plan, even if it means some hiccups along the way, as were experienced during a recent demonstration flight.
Astronics inks deal for deeper access into China
Doing business in China means finding a local partner to help build relationships. Astronics now has just such a deal to facilitate bringing its IFE/C hardware into what will soon be the largest aviation market on the planet.
Airlines, Airplanes & Airports
An electrified experience: PaxEx Update – 13 Dec 2019
Electric aircraft are really real and the Embraer E2 family is complete. Plus a ton of good news for Airbus and an incremental eventual win for inflight connectivity.
Qantas selects A350-1000 for Project Sunrise
A slightlyy modified version of the Airbus A350-1000(ULR) is the aircraft of choice for Qantas as it inches closer to its “Project Sunrise” plans for nonstop flights between Sydney and London or New York City. But neither the business plan nor aircraft order are finalized yet. Negotiations with pilots over work rules are the sticking point now.
Wizz Air plans Abu Dhabi expansion
Abu Dhabi is suddenly a hot market for low cost carriers. Wizz Air is the latest player, announcing plans to establish a Middle East-based outpost of its operations in the UAE captial. It expects to launch service in the second half of 2020.
Air France to swap A380, A340 fleets for A350 with expanded order
Air France will add ten more A350-900 aircraft to its fleet in the coming years, supporting the retirement of its A380s and A340s. The deal will help the carrier to simplify its operations and deliver a more consistent passenger experience across its long-haul operations.
JetBlue boosts Boston-LaGuardia Shuttle to 10x daily
More thant three years after launching a “Shuttle” service between Boston and LaGuardia JetBlue is finally getting serious about the operation, increasing to 10x daily flights each way starting in Spring 2020.
Seating & Cabin
United Airlines boosts 787 capacity with Polaris conversions
Business class passengers get a boost with the Polaris retrofits coming to United Airlines’ 787 fleet. But down the back the passenger density increases while lavatory count drops. That’s not great news for the bulk of travelers.
TSI Aviation Seats gains access to Airbus BFE catalog
Airlines purchasing the A350, A330/neo and A320/neo family aircraft now have a new option for a seating supplier. TSI Aviation Seats, a joint operation led by Turkish Technic, is now listed in the BFE catalog opening up new sales channels for the operation.
AirAsia takes delivery of its first A321neo
AirAsia’s fleet development took a step forward last week as the carrier’s first A321neo was delivered from Airbus. The carrier has 353 A321neo aircraft on order, with the new deliveries slated for network expansion and replacement of older A320 family aircraft over time.
Loyalty
IAG snaps up Air Europa to boost Latin American operations
Consolidation continues in the global aviation market, this time delivering a shift in transatlantic services. International Airline Group announced this morning its intentions to buy Air Europa. The Spanish carrier will become part of the Iberia operation within IAG though remain an independent brand, at least to start. The deal is valued at 1 billion euro and full integration is expected by 2025.
A WiFi Challenger: PaxEx Update 1 Nov 2019
Can LiFi replace WiFi on board, opening up more spectrum for passengers? And can new satellite launches deliver the capacity that airlines need for inflight connectivity? Plus an expanding award chart and plans for a massive fleet expansion in India.
MilePlay: Inside the numbers of United’s loyalty gamification & personalization push
Personalization and gamification. If you’re running a loyalty program these are key considerations that drive member engagement and incremental revenue generation. It is hard to judge the results from the outside looking in, but United Airlines opened up recently, sharing the success of its MilePlay promotions.
PaxEx Update
An electrified experience: PaxEx Update – 13 Dec 2019
Electric aircraft are really real and the Embraer E2 family is complete. Plus a ton of good news for Airbus and an incremental eventual win for inflight connectivity.
PaxEx Update: FTE Asia edition
AirAsia is (still) making big moves in the ASEAN region and digital bag tags are evolving to a level that might be useful soon. Plus some news on IFE/C going active and getting profitable. The 2019 Future Travel Experience Asia was a great show and these are just a few of the highlights.
A WiFi Challenger: PaxEx Update 1 Nov 2019
Can LiFi replace WiFi on board, opening up more spectrum for passengers? And can new satellite launches deliver the capacity that airlines need for inflight connectivity? Plus an expanding award chart and plans for a massive fleet expansion in India.
Live from the CRJ550: PaxEx Update 25 Oct 2019
United’s newest aircraft type takes flight this week and the CRJ550 interior really is as special as the company has been hyping. Airbus orders and Boeing delays plus some fancy new wifi and upgraded airports on the horizon. Another busy PaxEx week.
Sunrise Stretch: PaxEx Update 2019-10-18
The beginnings of Project Sunrise and extra leg room for the Kiwis. Plus more wifi (maybe) coming in China and another loyalty top tier moves further away.
Get these stories and more in this week’s PaxEx Update.