JetBlue’s A220-300 fleet will bring a new passenger experience to the airline. But it will do so with familiar partners. The carrier announced today that the planes will fly with the Thales AVANT inflight entertainment (IFE) solution on board. Delivery for the first of seventy A220s to the carrier is due in 2020.
IFEC
Viasat extends its SAS reach with long-haul planes
Viasat’s high-speed inflight wifi connectivity will soon fly farther on SAS. The two announced a deal at APEX EXPO this week for two new types to be retrofitted with the Ka-band connectivity solution. Unlike the current short/mid-haul SAS fleet these planes are intended to fly transatlantic routes with the Viasat hardware on board.
Cabin-wide Bluetooth audio to fly in 2021
It is a product years in the making, with mentions at multiple prior trade shows. This week, for the first time, Safran confirmed that its Bluetooth headphones pairing solution will fly cabin wide on Lufthansa and ANA starting in 2021(ish).
Gogo makes a China 2Ku play
Airlines in China find themselves spoiled for choice when it comes to picking an inflight connectivity solutions provider. Gogo (re)joins that party with an announcement this week that it will partner with APT Mobile Satcom Limited (APSATCOM) in selling its 2Ku connectivity solution in the country.
Air Canada confirms Thales as 737 MAX WiFi provider
The news was not particularly secret. Still, confirmation proved elusive until today. Air Canada now affirms its selection of Thales as the inflight wifi provider on its 737 MAX fleet.
PaxEx Update: World Aviation Festival 2019
So much happening at the World Aviation Festival this year but a few bits stood out above the rest for direct impact on passengers. Here are a few of the highlights from Air Canada, TAP Portugal, EasyJet and more.
SkyFive targets ATG network expansion on a global scale
Riding high on the launch of the European Aviation Network earlier this year, plans are afoot to expand the air-to-ground (ATG) inflight connectivity coverage footprint. Leading that charge is a company few have heard of, in large part because it did not exist until earlier this year. SkyFive, spun off from Nokia's core business, is now running projects in at least three other markets, with one network online for testing today. CEO Thorsten Robrecht spoke with PaxEx.Aero on the sidelines of the World Aviation Festival in London this week, keen to celebrate the early accomplishments with EAN, but also to highlight significant future potential for the technology on a global scale.
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OneWeb plans faster inflight connectivity network
With a mission statement of “Internet access everywhere, for everyone” OneWeb has plenty of markets where it can deliver its product to excited customers. Going forward the company wants commercial aviation to be a large part of that conversation. The company is starting to talk in detail about its plans for joining the market, and its targets are significant.
Vistara, Bluebox go app-free for streaming IFE
One year in to their partnership the streaming inflight entertainment solution flying on Vistara is getting an upgrade. Vistara World, powered by the Bluebox Wow portable IFE platform, no longer requires an app for passengers to view DRM-protected content. The change took effect on 1 September 2019 across the full fleet of 31 aircraft.
A setbacKa in China
Ka-band capacity over China will not expand this year as previously planned. The failure of ChinaSat-18 made sure of that. The near-term impact to the inflight connectivity world may extend beyond this one satellite problem.