On Monday afternoon a CRJ700 landed at Rocky Mountain Metro Airport near Broomfield, Colorado after more than four hours en route from Portland, Maine. Fortunately, no passengers found themselves enduring the “comfort” of that long ride in a little jet. But, thanks to the work happening on board, millions of travelers annually will soon have access to a better inflight Wi-Fi experience.
Air4All, Delta Flight Products team for wheelchair seating on board
Air4All and Delta Flight Products (DFP) have cooperated to develop a prototype seat that allows powered wheelchair to remain in their own wheelchairs for the entire journey. Much work remains before it might take flight, but this is the most significant progress in accessibility travel in decades.
JetBlue secures permanent Schiphol slots
JetBlue will have access to Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport to continue its flights from Boston and New York City for the winter season. And, unlike the slots it secured to launch the market this summer, the winter slots comes with “historical” rights, allowing it to keep them for future years, so long as it continues to operate.
Pricing tweaks ahead for Spirit’s in-flight Wi-Fi
Nearly a year after Spirit Airlines formally launched its on-board Wi-Fi program, new plans dynamic pricing models are slated for trial later this year.
United, Saudia sign on for Astrova IFE
The newest inflight entertainment platform from Panasonic Avionics scored two key wins at Aircraft Interiors Expo 2023 as long-time customers United Airlines and Saudia both selected the system for upcoming installations.
ThinKom Plus launches, with hybrid LEO/GEO offering
After teasing the details a bit in March, ThinKom formally launched its ThinAir Plus product line at Aircraft Interiors Expo 2023, integrating an ESA into the footprint of its Ka2517 solution. The system touts multi-constellation, multi-orbit, multi-beam connectivity support. The ThinAir Plus terminal is also the first to offer concurrent, multi-band connectivity in a single package.
Airbus HBCplus Ku-band providers selected
Following the selection of the Safran/ThinKom solution by Airbus for its Ka-band HBCplus inflight connectivity offering in June 2022 the industry has been waiting with baited breath to learn which partners would be selected for the Ku-band offering. This week at Aircraft Interiors Expo 2023 there appears to be an answer.
Collins brings galley inserts online with low-cost retrofit option
Is the aircraft cabin finally ready to report its health autonomously? Collins Aerospace believes the answer is a resounding yes, with the introduction of a low-cost retrofit solution which allows galley inserts to automatically transmit data in real-time from the aircraft to maintenance operations.
Another regional connectivity deal is done
No one is willing to spill the beans completely, but it appears ThinKom has secured an airline launch customer for its Ka1717 regional jet inflight internet solution.
Unum Two launches as forward-facing business class option
Unum Two is ready to fly. The new forward-facing, lie-flat, direct aisle access business class seat was introduced at Aircraft Interiors Expo 2023 in Hamburg, joining the Unum One herringbone design in the company’s portfolio.