The aircraft type will be new to the fleet, but JetBlue’s A220s will have some familiar touches on board. Among them, the inflight WiFi connectivity will be delivered by Viasat. And it will continue to be free to passengers.
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PaxEx Update: 2 August 2019
A new A321LR enters service for Aer Lingus, faster security screening for United and promises of faster infilght WiFi. Plus Hulu takes flight on Delta and more! Get all the details in this week’s PaxEx Update.
Inmarsat’s maturing IFC market
As inflight connectivity products mature and consumers become familiar with the offerings the expectation from suppliers is that they will pay more for the services more often. Just how long that maturation process takes remains an interesting question, however. The latest report from Inmarsat adds more data to consider on this front, but few solid answers.
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Air France adds A220s, retires A380s
Air France will add sixty A220-300 aircraft to its fleet from September 2021. The planes will replace the carrier’s aging A318 and A319 aircraft. The carrier also announced plans to fully retire its fleet of ten A380s by 2022.
Kymeta, Kepler demonstrate LEO link
Chalk up another successful test of an electronically steered antenna (ESA) against a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite. This time around the Kymeta u7 ESA repeatedly established reliable connectivity with Kepler’s two demonstration satellites.
Killing connectivity for Garuda, Citilink
It was one of the faster installations and activations for a new inflight connectivity customer. In under a year Indonesia's Citilink went from agreement to contract to installation to activation of its onboard WiFi solution, powered by Inmarsat's GX Aviation and managed by Mahata Aero Teknologi (MAT). Now that deal – and the associated installations on Garuda and Sriwijaya – appears dead.
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Aer Lingus’s first A321LR joins the fleet
Aer Lingus took delivery of its first A321LR last week and is wasting little time in pressing the aircraft into service. Flights to Hartford begin on Friday, August 2, 2019.
OneWeb launches high-speed satellite production facility
How does a company get a 650 satellite constellation into operation affordably and before the earliest builds are outdated? Building two a day in a brand new facility should help. Here’s how OneWeb is making it happen.
United Airlines wants WiFi to be free
Is the move to free inflight WiFi inevitable? United Airlines seems to think so, with plans in the works to make it a reality. Exactly when and how much remain unclear, but in today’s investor earnings call the company indicated those plans as part of a brief update on the overall product quality.
Air New Zealand’s first Dreamliner now online
Air New Zealand’s connected aircraft collection expanded to its 787 Dreamliner fleet this week. Aircraft ZK-NZF returned to commercial service after spending the month of June in the shop for the installation and certification of the kit. Like the rest of the carrier’s connected fleet the 787 is online via the GX Aviation satellite solution from Inmarsat.