The Business of Passenger Experience
Where and when will inflight internet finally take flight in India. A pair of players – Inmarsat and Global Eagle – are leading the charge to deliver connected aircraft in the region. At the Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg last week both vendors provided updates on their efforts, with neither appearing likely to fly in 2019.
SmartSky took another step forward as it seeks to deliver its ATG wifi solution later this year. Certification on the E135/140/145 family, facilitated by StandardAero, brings JetSuiteX (and potentially others) much closer to flying with the service.
How many megabits are you getting in the sky? Run a speed test on board a wifi connected aircraft and you might see huge numbers. Alas, the truth is generally something very, very different.
Want to get online on a British Airways short-haul flight? The service is now in soft launch mode on a limited number of aircraft, with pricing and service tiers finally coming out. There is no free option, but the plans are reasonably priced for the services. For passengers happy to just text with friends and colleagues […]
With the bulk of the global 737 MAX fleet grounded the impact to passengers is very real. Canceled flights, delays and rebookings will affect hundreds of thousands of travelers each day. Inflight connectivity providers will also be impacted as their systems are grounded.
High speed inflight wifi is now flying over Africa as Air Senegal’s A330neo enters service. The solution is powered by SITAONAIR and Inmarsat’s GX Aviation network.
As the installed aircraft count ticks higher for Viasat so, too, does the share of revenue the company realizes from that segment. The growth rate will slow in the coming year as the American Airlines fleet completes its conversion (more than 450 aircraft installed to date) but CEO Mark Dankberg believes there is still runway left in the market. Even if it is going to be a little later than previously expected.
Some good news for Gogo and its 2Ku airline customers as it reaches closure on an outstanding maintenance issue. This should ease the backlog as additional aircraft can once again be installed for three airline customers.
Viasat added a pair of new orders from existing customers United Airlines and Aeromexico today, continuing its growth in the inflight connectivity market.
Fresh off the announcement of its first commercial airline customer, upstart inflight connectivity provider SmartSky secured additional funding to complete its nationwide network deployment. The company announced a $104mm investment, bringing the total investment for the company to nearly $350 million.
