The AirAsia group is getting deeper into the in-flight connectivity business. Wholly owned subsidiary Asia Digital Engineering (ADE) completed its first installation of the GX Aviation system on a company A320, opening the door to future installations for both AirAsia and other airlines in the region.
We are delighted about the success of our first GX Aviation installation and look forward to continuing the rollout across AirAsia Group’s fleet, as well as bringing our world-class engineering and MRO expertise to other airlines.
– Mahesh Kumar, CEO of Asia Digital Engineering
While this is not the first AirAsia aircraft to fly with the GX kit on board. Upgrades to the in-flight connectivity experience began just over two years ago. Shifting the installations in-house, however, opens up options for the group covering cost savings and additional business markets.
Read More: AirAsia’s WiFi upgrade goes live on Inmarsat’s GX Aviation
Speaking to the value of the new opportunity, Inmarsat Aviation’s Vice President of Global Sales Chris Rogerson notes:
AirAsia Group is the largest customer for our GX Aviation inflight broadband solution in the Asia Pacific region, and one of the largest in the world. Our partnership has been a hugely successful one, based on a common passion about the exciting opportunities that digitalization and connectivity provide to passengers and the aviation industry, especially as airlines recover from the pandemic. We are delighted, therefore, to now collaborate on GX Aviation installations for AirAsia and other airlines in the region, bringing together the combined experience and expertise of Inmarsat, ADE and the rest of the AirAsia Group.
ADE was established in September 2020 with the combination of AirAsia Group’s engineering and MRO assets. ADE’s mission is to provide centralized support services, not only for AirAsia’s fleet, but also for other commercial airlines in the region. ADE continues to build on AirAsia Group’s 19 years of combined experience in operating and maintaining a large fleet of more than 250 Airbus A320 and A330 family aircraft.
Read More: Putting AirAsia’s new GX WiFi to the test
AirAsia joins a collection of airlines that now can manage IFC installations in-house. Delta Air Lines brought the 2Ku installations in-house for its A350 back in 2017 and has expanded that effort to manage installations across most of its fleet. Similarly, JetBlue began installing the Viasat Ka-band system on its aircraft earlier this summer. Lufthansa Technic has provided IFC installation services for years across multiple products and platforms from its bases around the globe.
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