The Business of Passenger Experience
When one or two executives leave a company it doesn't usually make the news. When it is a handful all at once eyebrows start to raise. After last week's news of one such shake-up in the inflight entertainment and connectivity world, however, the company's CEO says this is simply business as usual, finishing up a restructuring started in 2018.
India is one of the fastest growing aviation markets in the world and, somewhat surprisingly, one of the least connected in flight. That will soon change, however, thanks to the recent publication of new government regulations. Indian aviation is about to get online in a big way.
Is there a secret to better financing of inflight connectivity solutions? Indonesia's Mahata Aero Technology (MAT) is the latest to take that plunge, with an arrangement to cover the costs for Garuda and Citilink. The deal relies on partnerships with suppliers Lufthansa Systems, Lufthansa Technik and Inmarsat, along with what MAT Executive Director Iwan Setiawan describes as "a unique business model" that is proving successful in its preliminary state.
Viasat added a pair of new orders from existing customers United Airlines and Aeromexico today, continuing its growth in the inflight connectivity market.
Little deals matter, too. Italian leisure carrier Neos is the latest carrier to choose an inflight wifi connectivity solution. The carrier picked Viasat’s Ka-band system to operate on its trio of 787 Dreamliners.
Indonesian national carrier Garuda is expanding its inflight wifi commitment with Inmarsat’s GX Aviation solution. The move follows the selection earlier this year by Citilink, an LCC carrier in the Garuda Group, to install the same kit. The signed contract also quashes any hopes Global Eagle still had of resuscitating its deal with the carrier.
It launched as Gogo Vision Touch. Delta Air Lines would be the initial customer but plans were in place to expand the offering to other airlines. Those plans still exist in a roundabout way, but it no longer appears that Gogo is involved in the product as Delta carries this wireless IFE solution forward.
Singapore Airlines pressed its latest A350 configuration into service this week. Adelaide is the first destination to see the mid-haul plane and its new Thales AVANT entertainment and Inmarsat GX connectivity systems on board.
Can a massive airline deliver disruption in the inflight entertainment world? Delta Air Lines hopes the answer is yes as its Delta Flight Products (DFP) group formally launches its wireless IFE solution. Can a massive airline deliver disruption in the inflight entertainment world? Delta Air Lines hopes the answer is yes as its Delta Flight Products (DFP) group formally launches its wireless IFE solution. That's bad news for pretty much every other vendor in the inflight entertainment market today.
The official unveiling is set for Monday in Nadi but Fiji Airways cannot wait to tease some details around its new 737 MAX aircraft. Among them, confirmation that the inflight entertainment and connectivity will be provided by Panasonic Avionics. The partnership was reported to PaxEx Premium subscribers last month.
