March 2010 Archives

Ok. I'm going to give the OnAir/Ryanair story a rest for a bit (but I think I'll allow myself the right to point out (just one more time) that the mobile connectivity service touted by OnAir and Ryanair - and deserving of what looks like a French Can Can or an Irish jig - is now no longer available on the Irish carrier.)

What is worth talking about (for those in the IFEC community) is whys and wherefores of Row 44's decision to select the Tecom/Qest KuStream 1000 antenna for equipage across Southwest Airlines' fleet over the Aerosat antenna it used in all its flight trials.

Last week, at the World Airline Entertainment Association (WAEA) single focus workshop on in-flight connectivity, I put the question to Row 44 chief John Guidon, and I didn't get a very satisfactory answer. In all fairness to John, a quick Q&A probably wasn't the best time to talk about the intricacies of FCC filings.

Thankfully, a good source has pointed me to the answer.

Says the good source:

Row 44 put an amendment, SES-MOD-20091021-01342, into the FCC to use the new antenna, and had to point out the differences from the Aerosat antenna.

The main thing seems to be, from Attachment A, B, C:

In North America, the modified subsystem [Tecom] operates similarly to the current configuration [Aerosat] supporting an elevation range from 90° to 0° of continuous coverage with an azimuth coverage that is continuous over 360° while extending the skew to +/-35 degrees from +/-25 degrees.

"The skew angle is the range of angles in which you can operate with a given satellite. The narrower the skew angle, the narrower the cone of coverage extending from the satellite, and less range you have per satellite (east west). This limits the coverage, particularly as you move South. With the Aerosat antenna you probably would have, therefore, needed more satellites to cover North America, which would have made the economics for difficult" says the source.

Read the whole FCC exhibit here: Exhibits_A,_B_and_C[1].pdf  It even contains some juicy bits about Row 44 holding a license from Industry Canada and a declaratory ruling from Mexico (yeah, we like all the Americas!)

Now, speaking of skew angles, I wonder what the conversation between Ryanair and OnAir sounded like before OnAir announced its termination of their contract. Here is what I imagine in my daydreaming moments: "Right then OnAir, you can say you dropped us, but we at Ryanair can say we're looking elsewhere." For the love of God.

Ok. I'm done. It's out of my system. I think.

Flightglobal is inviting you to nominate the winners for the 2010 Flightglobal Achievement Awards. The award categories include Aviator, Innovator and Leader of the Year. Flightglobal also invites nominations for Lifetime Achievement and the Boeing-sponsored engineering student of the year.

The 2010 winners included Chesley Sullenberger (Aviator), Richard Branson (Innovator) and Bob Mitchell (Leader). Deadline for nominations is April 6.

While chatting with OnAir chief Benoit Debains this morning, I got the sense that our friendly Frenchman isn't overly concerned that OnAir and Ryanair have parted ways.

"It has been a long time now [that] OnAir has not been depending on Ryanair. I wish we kept Ryanair as a customer but the fact is [we] decided to terminate the deal and, without Ryanair, we remain the market leader [for in-flight mobile connectivity]," says Debains.

Indeed, OnAir may be lucky to be rid of the Irish low-cost carrier.

One source says OnAir provided onboard GSM equipment free of cost (FOC) to Ryanair and handed the carrier 5% of the revenue on the first 50 aircraft equipped with OnAir mobile connectivity.
 
Ryanair wanted a considerable number of additional FOC shipsets to further the programme, but OnAir wouldn't play ball, says the source.

Another source says simply that Ryanair wanted everything but didn't want to pay for it.

And Tim Farrar's latest blog says there was virtually "all upside for Ryanair (bar the cost of flying the equipment around), but financially disastrous for OnAir when revenues come in at a small fraction of the ERU550K per plane per year that was originally predicted by the two companies".

This has not been confirmed by either party, and Debains cannot talk about the specifics of OnAir's deal with Ryanair. He does inform me, however, that I'm regularly wrong about things (gee thanks! :).

Debains stresses that OnAir "is much more than just Ryanair" and well-positioned in the market with multiple deals for equipage. Oman recently launched OnAir's mobile and Wi-Fi connectivity, for example, and OnAir has been racking up the deals in the Middle East, outside of AeroMobile's customer Emirates.

Unlike the early days, when OnAir's founding fathers largely focused on the short-range European market - which provides very few RFPs these days - OnAir has "evolved" to include 10 business units, among them the long-range market, the Airbus A380 (special because it's such a big beast), VIP and maritime, notes Debains.

"As I speak, I am highly confident that we have secured deals in every one of the business segments," he says.

OnAir has "six airlines flying today, and by the end of the year we'll have 12 flying", he says, adding that OnAir also yesterday signed another VIP deal.

In short, says Debains: "We are alive and kicking."

Alive and kicking Ryanair to the curb, it would seem.

Cue the song "Alive" from the album "Satellite".
 

Don't call it Fusion. Due to trademark constraints, Panasonic's potentially-revolutionary 'Fusion' product (which merges high-end in-flight entertainment with slimline seating for a standard offering) is now referred to as the 'Integrated Smart Monitor'.

It's my understanding that Rockwell Collins didn't care for the fact that Fusion sounds an awful lot like its Pro Line Fusion integrated avionics system.

In any case, Integrated Smart Monitor doesn't have the same ring to it. I think we should come up with some ideas for Panasonic.

The 'Panasonic Merge' sounds nice, but the firm is already informally using 'merge' to describe its latest-gen iPod connectivity solution. The 'Panasonic Union' sounds like a bargaining agent.

What about simply the 'Panasonic Smart'? Because it's pretty clear some serious brainpower went into this product.

That's just one of the many questions being asked by industry observers today after OnAir's stunning announcement that it has dropped a contract with its biggest customer, Ryanair, after equipping no fewer than 50 of the low-cost giant's Boeing 737s with in-flight mobile connectivity service.

Key quote from OnAir:

"After operating the OnAir service on 50 of its aircraft for about a year, Ryanair wanted to expand deployment to its entire fleet. However, the two companies did not reach a mutual agreement on the proceeds and timing leading to the full deployment. Neither company can comment further on the terms of the agreement."

It costs a pretty penny to equip an aircraft with in-flight connectivity. And, at the end of the day, somebody has got to pony up. There are creative ways to cover equipage for cash-strapped carriers (we'll hear more on that from Aircell later).

But with specific regard to Ryanair, some wonder - did the carrier want free or nearly free equipage for the balance of its fleet?

Ryanair, meanwhile, says it is seeking a new service provider. Calling AeroMobile?

(Photo above from Mikelo's photo stream on Flickr)

The Aircell management reshuffle continues. Sources tell RWG that Aircell executive Tom Weigman is no longer with the company. This comes after Weigman was allegedly passed up for promotion to president and CEO, as  Michael Small was hired to the post.

Separately, but meanwhile, the Ambit lawsuit against Aircell and Delta Air Lines - claiming patent infringement regarding the provision of onboard Internet - has seen some recent movement, with the following occurring on 23 March (so this is going to trial?!?)

Loislaw Federal District Court Opinions (number 8 on the list)
AMBIT CORP. v. DELTA AIRLINES, INC. (Mass. 3-23-2010)
CIVIL ACTION NO. 09-10217-WGY.
March 23, 2010

On January 22, 2010, this Court denied the motion of Delta Airlines, Inc., and Aircell LLC ("Delta") for summary judgment that Patent No. 7,400,858 (the "'858 Patent") is invalid as obvious under 35 U.S.C. § 103 and notified the parties that it was considering granting summary judgment sua sponte on that issue for AMBIT Corp. ("Ambit"). Order Den. Mot. Summ. J., Jan. 22, 2010 [Doc. No. 135]. Subsequently, Delta filed an opposition arguing not only that its December 22, 2009, submission, which relied on a 1993 paper by A.C. Papavramidis et al. ("Papavramidis") combined with "Admitted Prior Art," was sufficient, but also discussing multiple other systems and references (Airfone system and Dennis, the original Aircell system, and the Casewell article) that allegedly render the `858 Patent obvious. Delta also filed a new voluminous expert declaration and numerous exhibits in support of its contentions. Decl. William R. Michalson, Supp. Def.'s Opp. to Sua Sponte Summ. J. [Doc. No. 147]; Decl. Stephanie P. Koh Supp. Def.'s Opp'n to Sua Sponte Summ. J. [Doc. No. 144]. This new expert declaration and the other evidence submitted after December 5, 2009, violates the discovery deadline, Case Mgmt. Order, May 4, 2009 [Doc. No. 31], and will not be considered by this Court.

If you've got an opinion on either situation, you can comment - even anonymously - to the comment section of this blog. What that means, specifically, is this - if you don't want to give your real name or email address you don't have to (you can be Anon at anon@anon.com if you want). If you're rather contact me directly, do so to my Yahoo address at mary_b_kirby@yahoo.com

(Photo above from Choking Sun's photo stream on Flickr)

Having just heard from a source that Southwest Airlines has installed a new Row 44 Wi-Fi radome on a fifth Boeing 737 (N910WN) - the first non-trial aircraft! - I was armed with a question for Row 44 CEO John Guidon at today's World Airline Entertainment Association (WAEA) single focus workshop in Universal City, Ca.

Guidon has confirmed that my source is correct, and that a fifth Southwest 737 has been equipped (for a picture of the aircraft with the radome, CLICK HERE). Presumably the radome is to house the Tecom/Qest KuStream 1000 antenna.

Row 44 yesterday announced it has selected the KuStream 1000 for equipage across Southwest's fleet. I asked Guidon why Row 44 picked the KuStream 1000 over the Aerosat antenna it has used for its trials.

Here is what he said:

"I don't' want to comment on why we moved to a different antenna. We learned a lot of stuff as we developed. We felt more comfortable with this choice."

When I arrived at today's World Airline Entertainment Association (WAEA) single focus workshop at the lovely Sheraton in Universal City, California, I immediately sought out a power socket for my laptop.

When I didn't see any free sockets in the room, I must admit I got a little bit frantic. I knew my computer wouldn't play nicely today (it gets cranky without power, believe it or not) and I desperately needed it to work right. I am, after all,covering the conference for Air Transport Intelligence, the Flightglobal IFEC channel, this blog, and my fellow Twitter junkies.

Thankfully, I received a tip that I could find a power strip at the very front of the room. Once plugged in, I immediately sought out....you guessed it, connectivity!!!

Delta Air Lines is also acutely aware that connectivity and power go hand-in-hand. And the carrier realizes that, despite the fact it is equipping its fleet with Aircell's Gogo in-flight Internet solution, its lack of in-seat power creates a "gap".

Key quote from Delta manager - global product development Chris Babb:

"In-seat power is more important than ever. With the proliferation of PEDs, customers' power needs and expectations have increased. It's a gap that Delta has right now. I know some airlines like American and Virgin America have either power at all seats or a good portion so that is really going to become more important as Wi-Fi becomes more prevalent."

By the way, Babb also said some other interesting things, like that he wouldn't be surprised if Delta tests in-flight connectivity on overseas flights in 12 to 18 months!

(Photo above from Kaleboos' Flickr stream)

Will tablets, like the Apple iPad, spell the end of in-flight entertainment (IFE), like some folks suggest? One industry expert weighs in (yes, anonymously, but you'll see our expert knows about which he speaks).

I don't think it will spell the end of IFE, but perhaps not for the reasons many seem to presume. For me, the value in IFE comes from a few unique-to-IFE areas:  

The first is content, collectively. Content is king. If you look at the consistent winners for cabin experience, and in some cases, IFE specifically, you will see a trend in that each has focused on providing a content-rich experience. You could set your iPad (or laptop, or iPod, or whatever) on auto-download for weeks on end, on your home network (the fastest) and not even come close to having the same content experience that is possible on IFE.  Factor in that airlines refresh their content every month (and in frequently emergent cases, even more often) and you can see where the PED experience cannot hope to keep pace.

The next is the experience. IFE is "uniquely present" in the cabin experience requiring nothing more of you than to select what you want to do. Moreover, it's present for the airlines, which is to say, they extend their brand to every passenger. Yes, there are some airlines that should never have been allowed to put their hands on the GUI/brand design, but there are many that truly "get it," having created a wonderful environment that both appeals and satisfies. The passenger is subtly and deeply immersed into the airline's brand and simply selects what they want, and they off and running.  No muss, no fuss, no device to hold-up/prop-up, etc. I think it was LiveTV that did the brilliant ad that said, "Is this the future of IFE" in which a passenger was hunched over their iPod, craned neck (ouch, that hurts) holding their device to watch a video. With the iPad, or otherwise, this will remain the case. And with the iPad, the airline gets little, though I must admit that with the connectivity portals, they can extend via this portal.

The next is evolution. IFE manufacturers are not going to rest on their success thinking they've got this sussed. Sure, they're proud of what they've achieved and think they have a great product. That said, their product strategists are always focused on innovation. What tends to get lost on the doomsayers of IFE is that there's more to this than what meets the eye (of the user).  

IFE manufacturers design for experience, reliability, quality, weight, power, consistency, etc. This never stops.
 
Another item to consider is penetration. Sure, Steve Jobs and his ilk would LOVE to see iPad ubiquity; their model is about so much more than the device (think Apps Store and iTunes; that's where the killer profit comes from), but I posit that they'll be lucky to see a 10-15% penetration in developed markets, and substantially less in less-developed markets. 

Further, their penetration is dubious in non-English-speaking markets; look at the failure of the iPhone in Japan and Korea. In air transport, the product has truly reached the masses. The cost of air travel has dropped so low that huge aspects of the population now travel, if not frequently, at least with some irregularity. Will all of these folks have portable media devices?  Not likely. I don't even think that a majority will have them. For the airlines, the IFE product is not only part of their brand, it's a significant pacifier that keeps the passengers sedate and happy, especially families with kids. Again, happy.

Beyond product evolution (hardware and systems), a primary focus for IFE companies, now, is on the passenger experience and the business platform that modern IFE represents. The advent and emergence of connectivity is rapidly evolving the IFE paradigm. People are keenly aware of the necessity to keep the platform current while also providing airlines with increasing opportunities for revenue enhancement, passenger intimacy, etc. There are myriad methods to do this, typically unique to each airline, but they are happening and will continue to do so.  The challenge to ensure that IFE firms not only keep pace, but that they drive change. 
 
By the way, I should say that I DO see a place for devices such as the iPad in IFE. They will be accommodated and perhaps even catered to some degree. There may even be airlines that will want wireless networks with content streaming, etc., and no imbedded seat equipment. This is not yet practical with current technology (not enough bandwidth for mass streaming), but there will come a day.  But herein again, for lesser penetration (back to my 15%, above).

(Photo of iPad from myuibe's Flickr stream)

I've been a busy pup lately (as evidenced by my crazy hair!), but I haven't forgotten about my awesome Boeing 787 twinjet tour in February. I finally had a chance to pull together a video blog with my friends at Not Bad Design. This is Airplane 3 (ZA003), the bad boy that is fitted with some interiors and now flying. Check it out!

It is borderline unacceptable that Discovery Channel's Mythbusters make no mention of picocell technology in these videos, or the fact that safe in-flight cell phone calls are being made in Asia, Europe and the Middle East (talk about American-centric), but the real crime comes at the end of the second video (skip right to the second video for the actual tests).

I think in-flight mobile connectivity rocks. I want to be able to call my daughter when I'm on the road - and in the air! I want to be able to interview you in-flight. Yeah you!

I carry two cell phones on me (don't judge). So, while I'm amazed and impressed by AeroMobile's usage rates, I'm not scared of the future. Are you? And if so, why? Let's give ourselves some credit. We can handle this. I know I can.

IAG's Addison Schonland has just had a powerful discussion with ASiQ chief Ron Chapman about the firm's SafeCell system, which "provides an alternative approach for passengers to use their mobile phones onboard aircraft without the requirement for installing complex GSM PicoCell network infrastructure". We've discussed this solution briefly in the past. It's all about Bluetooth baby and it plays nicely with Iridium or Inmarsat or Thuraya, according to Chapman!

Key quotes from Chapman:

"Text email on the aircraft is going to be free with us. Text messaging, as in from your phone to someone elses email on the ground, will be free. It's limited by the number of characters. It will probably be 100 characters of text..."

"But that's not real-time. That's why it's cheap. It's not real-time. You're leveraging off the Internet. You're bundling it up off the aircraft....

"Real-time stuff is SMS. That's when people are expecting an immediate reaction to what they're doing and so that you're going to pay for. But we think if you make it affordable people are going to use it as they do in everyday life."

But perhaps one of the biggest revelations in this call is the fact that teenagers will test the software on the ground before ASiQ releases it, or as Chapman says "pushes it into the airline world". And the solution has been integrated into two mega social networking sites (probably not hard to guess which two) for that testing. Check out the entire podcast here:




(Photo above from Schroder & Schombs PR Flickr stream)

Uh boy, few things are worse than having to eat your own words. However, after seeing AeroMobile's stats on in-flight voice call usage, I may have to do just that (well, just a little).

For years, I've been promising readers of this blog that people don't make a lot of voice calls in-flight. And, for years I've cited this "fact" as one of the many reasons why folks shouldn't be scared of allowing the technology to be fitted to US aircraft.

But AeroMobile - whose mobile connectivity solution is in place on 60% of Emirates' in-service fleet - has told me that over 11,000 voice calls were made/received to equipped Emirates aircraft in February 2010 alone!

The longest call made from an aircraft was 65min on a Dubai-Accra flight on 11 October 2009.

The highest number of calls made from an aircraft was 82 on a Bombay-Dubai flight on 20 September 2009.

And, are you ready for this? One of the top passengers (in terms of usage) generated on average over 2.5 hours of voice traffic on each of seven flights flown over the past 6 months!!!

You'll excuse me if I make the following statement in my most contrived Valley Girl accent: "Like, oh my gawd!!!"

Just look at how AeroMobile traffic has climbed in the last 10 months!



Now I know what you're thinking. An uber-wealthy, "I don't care about international roaming rates" kind of Emirates passenger cannot be compared to Joe Blow from Idaho.

Equally, however, as rates drop, we can't assume that Joe won't get really chatty with Flow on his flight to Boise.

Take a look at the regional trends for usage of AeroMobile's voice and SMS services.





But let's drill down. Here is an AeroMobile chart showing that Africa and Europe have higher usage (SMS and voice combined) than share of flights.



Africa, for example, generates 17% of usage but only accounts for 11% of flights. Key routes in north Africa such as Tripoli, Casablanca, Cairo and Khartoum contribute to this.

The highest number of SMS messages sent to/from an aircraft was 477 on a Casablanca-Dubai flight on 13 February, according to AeroMobile.

Europe, meanwhile, generates 29% of usage but only accounts for 19% of flights. Key routes such as London Heathrow and Munich contribute to this

OK, so it turns out that Emirates passengers like to talk in-flight (and some like to talk a lot). But you should also see this next chart, which shows the majority of calls are made on long-haul flights. It might make you feel a little bit better (i.e. it stands to reason that we can expect more voice calls on transcons than domestic short-haul in the USA, if the service is ever permitted).

Thankfully, I've still got loads of other reasons why I don't think this technology should be banned on US aircraft. So I don't have to dive into the humble pie as much as I need to take a slice (with real whipped cream, thank you).

We know that V Australia is launching the world's first integrated cellular and in-flight entertainment (IFE) platform this year. The mobile connectivity service is being provided by AeroMobile and the IFE is Panasonic's eX2 system.

But what exactly will V Australia's connected IFE entail?

Picture yourself watching a show on board an aircraft. The IFE system will ask if you want to receive phone calls or SMS messages during the flight. You say "yes" and pop your earphones on. Now sit back and enjoy the show. You'll be notified if someone is trying to reach you.

This is just the beginning, folks. There are scads more things that can be done with connected IFE. But it is heartening to see that IFE and C is about to be realized! Click on the pictures to enlarge.

I'm heading to Washington DC today to attend the Satellite 2010 expo, and to moderate a panel on in-flight voice and data connectivity tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to the session as we've got a great line-up of speakers.

However, before I put the pedal to the metal and high-tail it out of Lancaster, PA, I feel compelled to write a 'Rumour, News and Stuff' blog post because, quite simply, we've gone far too long without one! I'm leaving 'Speculation' out of the round-up for a change.

RUMOUR (which, by nature of its definition, is totally unsubstantiated)

There may be more to the recent shake-up at Aircell than meets the eye (isn't there always?) I'm being told that bankers were more than a little surprised that, during the management reshuffle, Ron Lemay was replaced as president and CEO by industry veteran Michael Small (pictured) instead of by executive vice-president, wireless service Tom Weigman.

In any case, Small is now allegedly tasked with getting things in gear for an initial public offering (IPO). I'm also being told that the $176 million raised by Aircell in a recent private placement of equity securities diluted the employee shares and employees are none too happy about this.

NEWS

Iridium is fielding increased interest from the likes of Cathay Pacific, Delta Air Lines, Qantas, FedEx and Continental Airlines (which has already fitted a batch of 737s with Iridium satellite phone systems). "If you think of [an airline] that has a fairly oceanic presence, Iridium is doing more and more penetration of that market, especially carriers with 757s now dedicated for overwater use that didn't come off the assembly line 15 years ago with satcom communications. They need it because the aircraft weren't inherently delivered with them," says a source. The immediate concern and desire is to have very reliable high-quality cockpit voice. A lot of airlines are using HF and they'd rather not use it as the quality is pretty poor. Iridium is less costly than the competition. "It is literally 50% to 60% cheaper with equipment and installation ranging from $30,000 to $35,000 per aircraft," claims the source. In light of this, Airbus and Boeing have programmes underway to see if Iridium should somehow play a role in new-build types.

Panasonic Avionics has been selected as a Mercury Award winner at the International Travel Catering Association (ITCA) 2010 conference in Cologne, Germany.  Panasonic was chosen in the Inspirations category for FlightPath, a conceptual interactive platform designed to engage passengers and drive the onboard food and beverage experience (I had a chance to check out FlightPath last year at the WAEA conference and expo in Palm Springs, and it was AMAZING).

Key par from the press statement:

FlightPath works with the aircraft's IFEC system to offer an event-driven, content-rich seatback environment, where the passenger's meal and beverage options are personalized, and presented within a visual in-flight timeline to the destination. Within FlightPath, passengers can take advantage of targeted advertising and shopping opportunities, either for in-flight, home, or at-gate delivery. In addition, passengers can engage with crew members, friends, and family using FlightPath's communication applications, for food pairing recommendations or even a virtual wine tasting event. The passenger's interactive experience can be further extended to include tourist information, virtual shopping centers or even booking restaurant reservations all from 40,000 feet. FlightPath seamlessly integrates with applications to provide airlines a complete food, beverage and entertainment solution. 

India's state owned civil aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is reportedly exploring the possibility of allowing mobile phones on aircraft. A 2000 Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR) currently prevents the in-flight use of mobile phones.

Hawaiian Airlines' decision to expand its fleet with a 10th new Airbus A330 is good news for Panasonic Avionics, which has a deal to supply its eX2 in-flight entertainment system in every seat of the carrier's A330s (passengers in first class will also be able to use Panasonic's iPod connectivity solution). The first three A330s to join Hawaiian's fleet are scheduled to arrive in April, May and November of this year. But Hawaiian also has firm orders with Airbus for six A350 XWBs. Panasonic would seem well-placed to secure the IFE business on these birds also.

ASiQ expects to announce the first installation of "the world's first aircraft Bluetooth access point" in the second quarter. ASiQ CEO Ron Chapman says: "Up until now passengers have only had very expensive options for in flight mobile phone communications however, with the evolution of our SafeCell App, combined with our new Bluetooth Access Point, airlines will now be able to offer their passengers affordable SMS, MMS, voice messaging and text email on the popular device of choice, the mobile phone. Better still SafeCell eliminates GSM roaming charges, as it does not require a GSM Picocell connection to deliver its services."

TriaGnoSys has launched Network Crossing via Translation (NeXT), calling it the "first cost effective solution for transporting IPv6 data over IPv4 satellite links, future proofing next generation aircraft communication services, including air traffic control applications".

Portable IFE specialist digEcor has secured a European launch customer for its next generation L7 handheld, and the company has even given me a peek at the device's very first photo shoot. Sexy!

STUFF

Some passengers are starting to realize just what a nuisance it is not to be able to make in-flight Skype calls on aircraft fitted with Wi-Fi. But that nuisance was elevated to another level when one passenger was informed by a United Airlines flight attendant that terrorism concerns are the reason why such calls are prohibited! Boing Boing asks the question: "Is in-flight video chat in the US legal?" The answer is that most airlines currently prohibit in-flight Skype calls but there is currently nothing in the federal rules to prevent such calls, that is unless the Hang-Up Act is enacted.

A new mobile app, called Uppward, could make flying a heck of a lot more social. Add your flights on Uppward and discover who else will be flying with you!

Heads are starting to roll at Koito Industries after the Japanese firm admitted to falsifying records on 150,000 seats on 1,000 aircraft in the world fleet. And it's easy to see why.

If EASA and the FAA issue airworthiness directives covering the modification or removal of seats that weren't tested properly before shipment to Airbus and Boeing, it could get VERY pricey for the industry indeed.

Just how pricey, RWG? Well, let's do the math.

Airlines pay approximately $1,500 for Y/C seats and anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000 for B/C seats.
 
In a worst case scenario, where an AD calls for the replacement of 150,000 seats, the cost for new seats alone would be in the arena of $300 million. And then there's the in-flight entertainment (IFE) costs! And the cost of taking aircraft out of service for modification. And the cost of modification. And yada, yada, yada.

Some folks in the industry believe the price tag of an AD could be somewhere around the $0.5 billion mark.

Of course, this could mean a windfall for seat manufacturers like Zodiac, Recaro and B/E Aerospace.

Business Week reports that Koito intends to complete the first phase of safety checks by the end of May.

Meanwhile, the prez of Koito is taking a pay cut. Best to start bolstering those cash reserves now, eh Koito?

(Photo above from PYONKO's Flickr stream)

Lufthansa intends to offer the Lufthansa Technik-made NiceView passenger flight information and moving map system on its Airbus A380s, the first of which is scheduled to enter into service this June.

NiceView provides various audio and video interfaces with the in-flight entertainment (IFE) system, according to Lufthansa Technik. Panasonic Avionics is supplying the IFE on Lufthansa's A380s (is this the first confirmation?!? By George, it is!!)

Here is an important graphic buried in the German carrier's annual report today. Meanwhile, for a breakdown of Lufthansa Technik's role in helping to develop the A380, go here.

We email like it's going out of style, and yet many of us don't appreciate what it takes to make our emailing happen in-flight. It's a big freaking deal. But new generation connectivity is not just happening in the cabin. It's happening in the cockpit too. And on ships. And in the hands of in-the-field journalists.

Ever wanted to understand how it all works? Watch this!

Last year at the Inmarsat Aeronautical Conference in Vancouver, Thales presented a video about the successful flight tests of its TopConnect suite of connectivity solutions on a McDonnell Douglas DC-9. TopConnect is supported by Inmarsat's SwiftBroadband aeronautical service.

After last year's event, I immediately started bugging Thales for a copy of the video. Well, I'm happy to report that I finally wore them down. Thales provided me with a copy when I visited their new Connectivity Suite facility in Crawley, UK last week. Thank you kindly!

Check this out. It shows just some of the work that went on at Thales in advance of last week's event. (Also be sure to read my buddy Bernie Baldwin's excellent article about Thales' Connectivity Suite).

We had a grand time last week. And did I mention there was bubbly? I had just a drop, I tell ya. Just a drop.

The headline, "US considers some free wireless broadband service", grabs ya, and then the obvious question ensues. What would this mean for the paid in-flight Wi-Fi service model in the United States? People get mighty used to having things for free.

Hat tip to Reuters on this timely piece. A couple key pars:

U.S. regulators may dedicate spectrum to free wireless Internet service for some Americans to increase affordable broadband service nationwide, the Federal Communications Commission said on Tuesday.

The FCC provided few details about how it would carry out such a plan and who would qualify, but will make a recommendation under the National Broadband Plan set for release next week. The agency will determine details later.

Meanwhile, my $4 off Gogo coupon has just arrived in my in-box (after I used the service on a recent flight to Dallas). Would I pay full whack for it again? Yes, absolutely. It was excellent. But enough about me.

Look at this lovely little email I received from Thales' Nick Silvester via the firm's new connected IFE app, which was demonstrated to me and other journalists last week at the Thales Connectivity Suite in Crawley, UK.

The email arrived in my Yahoo account very quickly after being sent by Nick. Very swiftly even.

Okay, now imagine you're an airline that wants to do your own personalized wrap-around on this email. Ohhhh, finally! All those promises of Personal Services are coming to bear. So it wasn't pie-in-the-sky!

But what else can you tell us about Thales' connected IFE, RWG? Well, let's ask the expert shall we? Note the key point - Every passenger gets connectivity via the IFE screen!

(And yes, before you say it, the Flip camera used on this trip proved woefully inadequate.Here we've got okay audio but poor video. I haven't stopped swearing since I came back from London, but there is still useful info in the following segment. Useful info, that is, unless you're looking for my telephone number.)


Now then, I would be remiss if I didn't post some photos of the Thales Connectivity Suite, which "allows airlines to work with business partners and customer focus groups to refine the connected experience in a live environment using real systems", says Thales.

That means airline managers get to try out Thales' in-flight GSM, Internet, and Skype solutions. But my personal favorite, if you haven't guessed it already, is the connected IFE. Now I wonder who the mystery launch customer for this solution might be, hmmmmm. Any guesses?



 

Take your own advice, and read the Flightglobal IFEC channel, since the Row 44/Mango story is sitting right there silly girl!

Thanks to Row 44 for not pointing this out to me when I asked them for comment today. Instead, a spokesman says the following:

"Yes, the Mango provider is Row 44. WirelessG is our new partner in South Africa (they're one of the biggest hotspot providers on the continent). We're pretty excited about that -- we now have airline deals on three continents."

Meanwhile, I've asked for an update on the Norwegian installs.

Row 44, WirelessG aim to offer Wi-fi to South African carriers

By Megan Kuhn

Broadband company WirelessG is preparing for ground-based proof of concept testing of Row 44 hardware for in-flight connectivity as the South African company aims to offer Wi-fi to carriers based in the country.

WirelessG has partnered with Row 44 to sell onboard internet connectivity to carriers throughout Africa, and the parties will share all revenue produced by the venture, Row 44 vice president of business development Frederick St.Amour says.

African operators will be able to equip their fleet for high-speed connectivity across multiple countries and over water as the Row 44 system utilises the Ku-band-based satellite network to provide in-flight connectivity.

WirelessG, which already sells a pre-paid Internet product known as G-Connect, will charge for onboard connectivity, and G-Connect customers will be able to use their current G-Connect accounts to access in-flight Wi-fi.

G-Connect customers will also be able to pre-load content on their account prior to their flight to access the content in-flight, St.Amour says.

WirelessG will integrate its billing platform with the Row 44 hardware installed on an aircraft, and the billing platform will connect via satellite to WirelessG's on-ground billing system to provide airline passengers web browsing, email access, VPN connectivity and web-based SMS.

WirelessG is in discussions with several South African carriers to provide Row 44's satellite-based broadband in-flight, WirelessG CEO Carel van der Merwe says in a statement. Van der Merwe did not identify airlines.

In addition to ground-based proof of concept testing, WirelessG will also operate an aircraft trial with whichever carrier signs on first, a Row 44 spokesman says, adding South African operators would likely offer connectivity on domestic and intra-African flights.

Once connectivity deals are finalised with South African operators, supplemental type certificates (STCs) for various aircraft types must be obtained from the South African Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

Due to a bilateral agreement between the USA and South Africa, Row 44's existing STCs can be transferred from the FAA to the CAA, St.Amour says.

The transfer may take a couple of months and may require a test flight, he explains.

It appears that Row 44 has inked another deal. South African carrier Mango has announced that it will offer in-flight Internet connectivity to passengers, pending CAA approval (see full statement below).

The "G Connect" entity mentioned in Mango's statement says it is working in partnership with Row 44. Click through to the highlighted words to learn more.

The Row 44 site, meanwhile, mentions nada about this arrangement. Flightglobal's ACAS database shows that Mango operates four Boeing 737-800s.

Mango jets into cyberspace as airline aims to be the first to offer in-flight connectivity with G-Connect from mid-year
 
Johannesburg: Mango announced today that it aims to be the first South African airline to offer Internet connectivity on board all its aircraft later this year, subject to CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) approval processes. The airline, whose partnership with G-Connect has already delivered more affordable bandwidth to South Africans, has extended this association with the provider to include the in-flight service. Using the G-Connect Internet on board Mango's aircraft will cost less than R1 per megabyte.
 
"Mango's focus this year is not only on enhancing service delivery to our Guests," says CEO Nico Bezuidenhout, "but in the continual exploration of innovation and ancillary revenue opportunities. The launch of web-connectivity on board our aircraft not only underpins Mango's business objectives but allows travellers, in particular our business Guests, to leverage a priceless commodity - time." Bezuidenhout says that Mango's Internet service will be operational across its fleet of new generation Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Mango will follow a similar rollout process as America's low cost Southwest airline.
 
Carel van der Merwe, CEO of WirelessG says: "G-Connect strives to be an innovative product within the telecoms space, but with our first in-flight partnership with Mango, we are able to take this one step further and provide a low cost Internet service for local flyers as well. There are no sign-up costs to get a G-Connect account and no contract tie-ins, which makes this a viable option for all Mango Guests. Your G-Connect account then allows you stay connected through a shared wallet on the ground, or in-flight Wi-Fi in the air, paying only for the services use."
 
The satellite based technology will deliver high speed Internet at altitude. "In fact, the cost of data transfer is more affordable than many bandwidth offerings on the ground," says Bezuidenhout. Several airlines, including cost Southwest, have made connectivity at altitude available globally with great success. Bezuidenhout adds though that Mango's service will be moderated to exclude access to potentially offensive web content. "In order to ensure the comfort of all our Guests on board, content that should be accessed in privacy will not be available."
 
Subash Devkaran, Senior Manager: Aircraft Certification Division of of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) adds: "The application for and availability of wireless Internet on board commercial airliners is welcomed by the CAA. We do believe installation of this system would facilitate business efficiency in South Africa, thereby contributing to enhanced economic growth in the country."
 
G-Connect On board Internet access follows a string of aviation innovation by the airline. Mango was the first to retail bookings through Shoprite, Checkers and Checkers Hyper Moneymarket Counters and remains the only airline in the world to (Edgars, Jet) accept store charge cards as flight payment online and through its call centre. Last week, the airline also announced its founding membership of the Copenhagen Accord supporting Live The Deal/Green Earth Travel Foundation. Mango remains the most on-time departure airline in domestic skies.

(Photo of mangos taken by papalas, which can be found on Flickr)

One day after visiting with Thales, which is using Inmarsat's SwiftBroadband aeronautical service to support its connected IFE solutions, I scooted on over to Inmarsat in London for a tour of the firm's operations center and a candid one-on-one interview with chairman and CEO Andrew Sukawaty.

Sukawaty talked about the increasingly popular SwiftBroadband service and whether or not there exists a business case for Ku or even Ka connectivity.

Some key quotes from Sukawaty:

"The art of the doable is not always the art of the economically feasible...With Connexion, we had a situation where people saw what the art of the doable was, but they didn't understand what the art of the economical was. And so this economic feasibility plays a big role in what we're thinking about. I think that our customers, whether they're airlines, airline customers, private jet customers, or government customers, I think what have come to depend on from us is that when we put something in place, its going to be there, it's going to work and it's going to stay there for a very long period of time, because the capital investments they make to put this on an aircraft or a ship are enormous. And to be tearing things out and putting something else in because the service has been discontinued or economically it didn't work, is just not on for these kinds of customers."

"I think at this moment in time, it [Ku-band-based connectivity] is not where it needs to be. Will it be where it needs to be in three or four or five years, possibly."

"[SwiftBroadband] is the fastest growing aero service we've ever introduced. To put it into perspective...just over 10% of our revenues are aero, but it has been the fastest growing single sector for us. For many years it was flat. It has been in the last four or five years, where we've seen some fairly explosive growth..."

A quick note - Please view this video with the volume turned all the way up (and preferably if you've got speakers on high) because the Flip camera used for this interview is many good things (light and compact) but the audio, unfortunately, is not great. Also, due to YouTube file constraints, I was forced to cut some of my taped interview out, so expect a Part 2). 
 

Does Thales have a solid in-flight connectivity strategy in place? The manufacturer gave a resounding "yes" to that question today when it showcased its new London area-based connectivity demonstration suite to journalists, and revealed it has concluded an agreement with a "six star" airline covering installation of its connectivity solutions, including GSM, Wi-fi, and connected IFE (with FaceBook, Twitter and other apps, oh YES!).

Check out what Thales head of in-flight entertainment Alan Pellegrini had to say about the new deal and keep your eyes on this and the Flightglobal IFEC space for more info about Thales' strategy in the coming days. Thanks Thales for letting me play with all your fun stuff!
 

How do you define broadband? Like many people, I think of broadband Internet as high-speed Internet. But, after reading my blog from yesterday about Oman's Internet solution, some kind folks forwarded me the definition of broadband. Fair enough.

Source Wiki

Broadband in telecommunications refers to a signaling method that includes or handles a relatively wide range (or band) of frequencies, which may be divided into channels or frequency bins. Broadband is always a relative term, understood according to its context. The wider the bandwidth, the greater the information-carrying capacity. In radio, for example, a very narrow-band signal will carry Morse code; a broader band will carry speech; a still broader band is required to carry music without losing the high audio frequencies required for realistic sound reproduction. A television antenna described as "broadband" may be capable of receiving a wide range of channels; while a single-frequency or Lo-VHF antenna is "narrowband" since it only receives 1 to 5 channels. In data communications a digital modem will transmit a datarate of 56 kilobits per seconds (kbit/s) over a 4 kilohertz wide telephone line (narrowband). However when that same line is converted to a standard twisted-pair wire (no telephone filters), it becomes hundreds of kilohertz wide (broadband) and can carry several megabits per second (ADSL).

Broadband in data can refer to broadband networks or broadband Internet and may have the same meaning as above, so that data transmission over a fiber optic cable would be referred to as broadband as compared to a telephone modem operating at 56,000 bits per second. However, a worldwide standard for what level of bandwidth and network speeds actually constitute Broadband have not been determined.[1]

However, broadband in data communications is frequently used in a more technical sense to refer to data transmission where multiple pieces of data are sent simultaneously to increase the effective rate of transmission, regardless of data signaling rate. In network engineering this term is used for methods where two or more signals share a medium.[2] Broadband Internet access, often shortened to just broadband, is a high data rate Internet access--typically contrasted with dial-up access using a 56k modem.

Dial-up modems are limited to a bitrate of less than 56 kbit/s (kilobits per second) and require the full use of a telephone line--whereas broadband technologies supply more than double this rate and generally without disrupting telephone use.

Good gracious but isn't it a busy time in the world of in-flight entertainment and connectivity (IFEC)? If I step away for even five minutes I miss some serious action! Here is a run-down of stuff you should know about.

For starters, as expected, Oman has switched on its 'Mobile OnAir' and 'Internet OnAir' solutions on a single Airbus A330-300. The carrier is billing the Internet solution as "broadband" in its press release, which is a bit of a stretch since Inmarsat's SwiftBroadband aeronautical service isn't as swift as its name suggests. And, let's be frank, the Internet is a bit pricey! Nonetheless, Oman deserves props for being the first carrier in the world to offer both mobile and Internet. Check out its advertisement above. Nice PR effort, Oman!

Etihad Airways will fit RDT-manufactured "Tempus IC" systems on its Airbus A340 and Boeing 777 aircraft to monitor the condition of passengers who display signs of sickness that might require immediate medical attention.

Key par from the press statement:

"The "Tempus IC" system allows cabin crew to gather vital information about a passenger's health quickly and efficiently. The data covers a wide range of the passenger's 'vital signs' including blood pressure and an electrocardiogram. It also allows the crew to take photo imagery. That information is then transmitted to a medical team of global experts specialised in assistance in in-flight medical contingencies. Following their advice the crew will take a decision about what to do next for the passenger and the flight."

Speaking of Etihad, I'm told that the new Thales retrofit on the carrier's 777 and A320 fleets has Panasonic Avionics' eXPort iPod jack. Panasonic licensed it to IFPL and Thales used it. Perhaps there will be a standard on this solution someday, yes?

Inmarsat is reportedly asking prospective satellite builders to study a fifth-generation Inmarsat constellation that would carry a mixed L- and Ka-band payload. Wow, we're hearing more and more about Ka band-based connectivity these days, aren't we?

EADS Innovation Works is making progress on wireless IFE via a 60GHz system. Check out what Airbus' sister is up to in this regard.

And did you see this about Iran's demands for moving map displays?!?P

Phew, we'll have lots more fun IFEC stuff in the coming days. I'm in London this week to see Thales' connectivity suite. Then I'm hitting Washington DC mid-month for the Satellite 2010 conference, where I'll be moderating an in-flight connectivity panel. At the end of March, I'll fly out to California for the WAEA connectivity workshop. Like I said, lots going on in IFEC!!!