News
GX Aviation taking connectivity to new levels
Hamburg, Ger. - Inflight connectivity is evolving rapidly and the fully connected aircraft is coming on stream as the technology develops.
April 15, 2015 By SITA
SITA OnAir is a key Inmarsat Distribution Partner for GX Aviation, the only global Ka-band network. This SITA OnAir and Inmarsat GX Aviation demo, operating over a live GX link, shows what passengers, the cabin crew and pilots will experience.
SITA OnAir has nearly 400 airline customers operating over 14,000 aircraft, all of which can benefit from the super-fast broadband GX Aviation network, providing 50MB/s to the aircraft.
“Passengers now expect to be able to stay in touch when they are flying. Social media, email, text messaging and calls are the norm,” said Ian Dawkins, CEO of SITA OnAir. “What’s new is that super-fast broadband for inflight connectivity now extends to new satellite networks for both passenger and airline use. Airlines will be able to exchange data for operational purposes, and passengers will have the same Internet speed they are used to at home.”
This is the new reality of inflight connectivity. For the very first time, there really is no difference between being in the air and being on the ground.
The successful first test was carried out in March in the Inmarsat lab at the company’s London headquarters. The GX Aviation satellite network was tested rigorously, using passenger, crew and aircraft applications. This included replicating usage onboard a commercial aircraft, which demonstrated that GX Aviation has the bandwidth to meet and exceed all expectations.
Dawkins continued, “We are providing our current customers with a clear and straightforward upgrade path to GX Aviation, including all the necessary installation capabilities across the world. In fact, we have already initiated work on the STC project for the Boeing B777 to operate our products and services over the GX Aviation network”
“Only SITA OnAir has the expertise to provide nose-to-tail connectivity and it is a reality today,” continued Dawkins. “And we have been working in airline IT for over 65 years, giving us the unique expertise to integrate the aircraft into the airline’s IT infrastructure.”
