How fast will connections on the upcoming Gogo 5G network be? The company anticipates delivering 25 megabits per second (Mbps) on average to any connected aircraft. Peak speeds are expected in the 75-80 megabits per second range.
We are confident that with our new higher speeds and inherent low latency, 5G will deliver the best connectivity experience in business aviation.
– Sergio Aguirre, president of Gogo Business Aviation
The projected test speeds are based on modeling of high demand city pairs across the USA. Gogo has been performing flight tests to validate the modeling on its initial airborne and ground station hardware in recent months.
The projected speeds deliver a massive boost from today’s 2-7 Mbps speeds reported in a recent Boston Consulting Group survey. That survey included more than 70 Gogo customers.
Advertising these speeds now is important for the company as it continues development of the network and on-board hardware. It is even more important as Gogo now faces competition from SmartSky, with the latter’s network finally active and working on aircraft installations.
That Gogo can publish numbers besting SmartSky’s plans (and what I realized in testing) – albeit not verified by outsiders or in real-world scenarios – probably doesn’t hurt either. AIN recently reported 15 Mbps advertised speeds on the SmartSKy network.
A test flight over NBAA 2021 delivered 6 Mbps peak speeds based on passenger demand, not scripted stress testing systems.
Gogo continues to advertise a late 2022 launch of the upgraded network. Installation and testing of the new hardware is ongoing.
It also announced a launch customer two weeks ago, with 50 aircraft committed to upgrade from the AVANCE L5 platform over a couple years. Other AVANCE L5 customers are expected to follow, with a relatively easy hardware upgrade path available.
Launching the Gogo 5G network also triggers a significant increase in consumption charges for commercial aircraft using the ATG network. These subscriptions, now owned and managed by Intelsat as part of the Commercial Aviation division divestment, see the price jump even if the aircraft are not all upgraded.
That’s a big win for Gogo in the short term as well.
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