Gogo Business Aviation reached another milestone with its AVANCE L5 platform this month. The company announced that its air to ground 4G connectivity solution secured type certifications for the full complement of Gulfstream business jets. The Supplemental Type Certificates (STCs) secured include the following Gulfstream airframes: G650/650ER G600 G550/GV/SP G450/GIV/SP G280 In addition to the availability […]
wifi
PaxEx Premium: Challenged to the core
It was supposed to be a massive shift of market share in the inflight connectivity world. Former Panasonic Avionics executive David Bruner claimed significant numbers of Southwest Airlines aircraft would see the Global Eagle kit uninstalled, replaced with PAC's solution, along with the ongoing line-fit deliveries. Instead Global Eagle is replacing PAC on the small number of 737s that were installed. And that might not even be the largest challenge Panasonic faces today.
In the couple months since PAC's partnership announcement with Inmarsat the company has pushed a two pronged approach to its future business. One one side sits the core competencies of its inflight entertainment business. On the other, driven by many of the new faces in the company's leadership, comes a shift towards a services operation. Both sides face challenges.
Seeking ThinAir: The search continues
A couple weeks ago hopes were high for a new antenna system in flight testing. That dream appears to have come back down to earth as Spirit Airlines’ first A321 with the Thales FlytLive kit installed reentered flight services this week.
UON takes first flight on a Saudia A320
The first UON-equipped aircraft entered commercial service this week. The Saudia A320 HZ-ASB began passenger service with the new inflight connectivity kit installed on 10 November 2019. The aircraft serves Geneva from Saudia’s hubs in Riyadh and Jeddah.
Honeywell Aerospace signs on as Inmarsat GX Aviation reseller
Honeywell Aerospace is no longer just the manufacturer of the JetWave hardware for Inmarsat’s GX Aviation offering. The company now is a reseller of the service as well. The deal adds another VAR to Inmarsat’s global network and comes on the heels of the deal bringing Panasonic Avionics on board just weeks ago.
An end to cheap* WiFi for airlines?
Maybe it has never truly been cheap for passengers, but airlines historically took advantage of great deals from suppliers to secure inflight wifi connectivity solutions relatively inexpensively. As those vendors now seek financial stability more than market share a shift is underway. Is the era of cheap wifi over? (And did it ever really exist?!?)
PaxEx Premium: Looking ahead to Global Eagle’s earnings
Two stories should deliver a net boost for Global Eagle headed into Thursday's earnings release. They are not both good news (and one remains unconfirmed), but the positive outweighs the negative significantly.
Gogo’s strong Q3 offset by global ARPA concerns
Gogo revised its expectations for 2020 and beyond, announcing updated goals as the company continues its drive towards profitability. Alas, details on those revised targets will not be shared with investors. CEO Oakleigh Thorne shared that the new math takes into account "more realistic expectations" of satellite costs and the shift to the airline-directed model. Assuming the new numbers are part of the Q3 '18 numbers they should help the company significantly, though there are indications some parts of the operation could revert to higher costs. The inability for global revenue to keep pace with growth in North America is also concerning given the company's current backlog.
Garuda goes GX for inflight connectivity
Garuda Indonesia is the latest carrier to get online in the sky. The airline announced today that it will fly Inmarsat’s Global Xpress kit on its fleet, starting with the A330s early next year.
Gogo, GOL partner on connected flight deck solutions
GOL Linhas Aereas inked a deal to install Gogo’s Aircraft Data Service, Wireless Quick Access Recorder and Automated Turbulence Reporting on board across its fleet. The Brazilian carrier, already a 2Ku customer, becomes the launch customer for these platforms. The partnership should improve the airline’s operational efficiency while also helping Gogo expand into the connected airframe market.









