Airlines looking at the Inmarsat GX Aviation network have a new option for the antenna and terminal bits, supported by ThinKom and GDC Technics.
IFC
Global Eagle charts a new course out of Chapter 11
As Global Eagle finalizes its financial plans for emergence from Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection there are plenty of questions about what the future of the company will look like. Fortunately the most critical issue is easy to answer: The Albatross test aircraft remains part of the operation. Beyond that, however, the company sees the current industry crisis as an opportunity to reinvent what the inflight connectivity and entertainment business looks like.
The Weekly Wrap: GX+ North America and Spirit’s New Loyalty Program
In this edition of The Weekly Wrap we’re chatting with Philip Balaam, president of Inmarsat Aviation, about the company’s tie-up with Hughes to create a new in-flight connectivity solution, GX+ North America. Plus FreeSpirit, OpenIFC, and showers in the sky.
Inmarsat launches GX+ North America expansion with Hughes
The Inmarsat network just got a lot larger. The satellite connectivity provider is teaming with Hughes to bring the JUPITER High Throughput Satellite Ka-band constellation into the GX Aviation network, a major boost to capacity as the company seeks to capture more of the North American market.
JetBlue’s first A220 emerges with a new tail design
Welcome “Hops” to the JetBlue tail design collection. The new art appeared on the carrier’s first A220-300 as it emerged from the paint shop in Mobile, Alabama this week.
Solving the Thales Ka-band antenna conundrum
Rip-and-replace is rarely good news for an on-aircraft hardware system. But there’s at least one big winner with the latest revision to the Thales Ka-band in-flight connectivity offering. The Thinkom ThinAir Ka2517 has been confirmed on an Spirit Airlines A321 headed towards certification.
Clearing the air
On Monday STS Aero Mod announced a big push to fit the Thales inflight wifi connectivity system on aircraft over the next 12 months. It now appears, unfortunately, that some of the details shared by the company and analyzed for PaxEx Premium readers were not accurate. Hopefully the update below helps to clarify some of that information.
SmartSky appoints David Helfgott as CEO
There’s a new boss in town at SmartSky. David Helfgott takes over as CEO of the company, replacing Haynes Griffin. Griffin will remain as executive chairman at the company as part of the transition.
Thales Wi-Fi installations begin at STS Mod Center in Florida
The next generation of Thales in-flight wifi service installations are underway. The work is being handled by STS Mod Center, a division of STS Aviation Group, at its facility in Melbourne, Florida. STS indicated plans to fit more than 100 aircraft in the coming year for an unnamed customer. Figuring out who it is was not too difficult, though.
ZIPAIR picks Panasonic Avionics for inflight connectivity
When ZIPAIR finally starts carrying passengers they’ll have a familiar option for inflight connectivity on board. The company announced its selection of Panasonic Avionics to power IFC on the 787-8 fleet.