May 2010 Archives

In-flight entertainment industry veteran Steve Harvey's bi-weekly web show The PME Interview is a must see.

Harvey interviews leading figures in the world of IFE (and connectivity), and has already built up quite the archive.

Be sure to check out Harvey's latest interviews with Virgin America's Alfy Veretto, Lumexis' Doug Cline and Thales' Alan Pellegrini. And enjoy the soothing tones of Harvey's lovely British accent.

Frontier Airlines' new owner believes embedded in-flight entertainment will play a diminishing role as in-flight connectivity is adopted by carriers.

Speaking to journalists yesterday at the Regional Airline Association (RAA) convention in Milwaukee, Bryan Bedford, chief executive of Frontier parent Republic Airways, said: "How much of the media [now onboard] will go portable? [I think we will] see reduced demand for IFE and more for connectivity."

Frontier is equipping its E-Jets with Gogo in-flight Wi-Fi. Asked by RWG if Frontier will also equip its Airbus narrowbodies with the service, Bedford said the carrier will make that decision "six to nine months" after testing Gogo on the E-Jets.

Bedford is a big fan of the LiveTV offered on Frontier's A318s, A319s and A320s, but he doesn't see a place for it on the E-Jets. "The LiveTV take rate on sectors over two hours is quite substantial. Under two hours is not as robust," he says.

He notes that technology is moving quickly. "Who knows what technology will bring us in 2011 onboard [aircraft]."

Republic, meanwhile, has aligned the delivery dates of its CSeries aircraft with existing expiration dates on Frontier's Airbus A319s.

The first of 40 CSeries CS300s will be delivered to Frontier in the second quarter of 2015.

Bedford says the single-class 138-seat aircraft gives Frontier huge flexibility to either "stay neutral" by accepting CSeries deliveries while returning A319s to their owners or to grow by extending the A319 leases.

So will Frontier offer in-flight connectivity on its CSeries? It seems likely. Whether live television will continue to be part of the Frontier offering in the coming years appears to be the big question mark, however, especially as A319s exit the fleet.

Did you miss the Aircraft Interiors Show in Hamburg but still want to see the awesome show dailies produced by Flightglobal? Well you're in luck. Here are the links to day 1, 2 and 3 of the dailies. Day 2, with the Yarwood girls on the front page, was particularly hot. Go figure.

Day 1

http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1E4bfba3987df6e272.cde

Day 2

http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1H4bfba384cd093921.cde

Day 3

http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1B4bfba3a5311a2503.cde

In the final hours of my last day at last week's Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg, I received an email from a Flight International editor seeking an opinion piece for the weekly magazine on the state of the in-flight entertainment (IFE) industry. Does a slow death await embedded IFE thanks to iPad and connectivity, he asked, and can you give us 450 words stat?

I told him that I'd be happy to give him 450 words (fueled with a few pina coladas from the adjacent Tiki bar), but that I'd argue the contrary. Embedded IFE has staying power precisely because of connectivity, or, as the original headline for this piece read - IFE is "here today, here tomorrow". Here's why (don't squint, click on the piece to make larger):

A number of themes emerged from the Aircraft Interiors Expo this week. I give a quick run-down in the video below, but I would be remiss not to at least mention here that all the  pre-show buzz about the iPad as IFE needs to be tempered. I chatted with some major content providers at the show, and some were highly amused by BlueBox's aspirations, saying content deals have not yet been arranged. As one blog commenter puts it:

"Aside from a whole stack of issues around usability (do you want an iPad in your lap for 14hrs on a flight vs a screen in the seat back in front of you) there are the big issues around power, ease of breakage/theft and most of all, managing the things from an OS, patching, apps and content point of view. Let's not even get into digital rights management and what the Hollywood studios will demand for first run movies."

 

Pssst....I'm hearing that Emirates today signed a deal with OnAir to bring the Airbus/SITA joint venture's in-flight connectivity solution to its Airbus A380s.

A formal announcement is expected to be released in the coming days.

The deal opens up loads of talking points. Emirates is, after all, in the process of fitting OnAir rival AeroMobile's connectivity solution to the rest of its fleet. Plus, the deal comes on the heels of Qatar's big announcement this week that it will launch Thales' new connected IFE - plus OnAir connectivity - on its Boeing 787s!

However, those points will have to be addressed later, as I've just arrived home from the Aircraft Interiors Expo and I must admit that my brain is totally fried (my feet are also totally swollen, which could be a result of Continental Airlines' incredibly uncomfortable economy-class seats - Koito-licious - or the fact that I was moshing like a teenager at last night's Panasonic party, which was off the hook).

So stay tuned to this space for updates.

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

UPDATE 2: I just saw OnAir chief Benoit Debains at the Row 44 booth - are these two talking? hmmmm - and suffice it to say that Benoit is ready to do another jig, since OnAir says its solution will be line-fit offerable on the 787 (see blog post below).

During a recent unveiling of its connectivity suite in London, Thales promised that the launch customer for its new connected in-flight entertainment would be BIG.

Well, it's safe to say that Thales didn't disappoint.

By now you've no doubt heard that Qatar will offer the Inmarsat SwiftBroadband-supported Thales IFEC solution on up to 60 Boeing 787s. Cha-freaking-ching.

Obviously, this is fab news for all players involved, Thales, Inmarsat, OnAir and Qatar. Significantly, however, the Qatar deal is big news for 787 customers, many of which have been banging on Boeing's door for cabin connectivity from the get-go (Retrofit your 787 with connectivity? Uh, no thanks.)

I chatted with V Australia's Greg Mashlin today. He knows a thing or two about banging on Boeing's door for connectivity on new-delivery aircraft. V Australia is launching a SwiftBroadband-supported Panasonic/AeroMobile connected IFE solution on its 777s in the near term. But the carrier wanted the solution on delivery. Yes, V Australia is among the carriers that pressured Boeing to agree a connectivity plan for the 777, says Mashlin. "Very much so."

On a personal note, I'm relieved that my inside info on this particular Thales deal was accurate. I thought I was going to have to pair back my wine intake tonight. Crisis averted!

Turn the sound up all the way on this video of my chat with Thales in London.



(Photo above from Dave Sizer's Flickr photo stream.

Update: Okay, okay, okay, it's not Jet Airways that's launching the Lumexis fiber optics-based IFE system on its Boeing 737s, it's FlyDubai. The first aircraft will be retrofited - right after delivery in October - in Seattle. Here's hoping I am not wrong on both (or else I'll have to look seriously at my wine intake :)
 
Original blog post: I have just come away from a lovely Airbus cocktail reception and, after chatting with various industry execs, I can tell you with rather strong assurity that Qatar Airways will launch the Thales connected In-flight entertainment solution and Jet Airways will launch the Lumexis ffiber optics-based IFE. More tomorrow. Ciao Baby!!

Flightglobal this week will cover the Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg in a big way. Be sure to check out our special Aircraft Interiors Expo landing page for all the latest news, images and videos to come out of the show, which runs 18-20 May. And follow along on Twitter via the hashtag #HAM10. Here is what people are saying thus far.

Last year, while I was scurrying from one interview to the next during the final day of the annual World Airline Entertainment Association (WAEA) exhibition in Palm Springs, California, Thompson Aerospace president and CEO Mark Thompson pulled me aside and asked if I could spare a few minutes to talk about something at his booth.

I must admit that, after having interviewed countless in-flight entertainment and connectivity (IFEC) executives during the week, I was rather eager to wrap things up, bid the good members of the WAEA adieu, and find a comfortable barstool for some dedicated Corona drinking.

Mark was eager too, but not to tell me about Thompson Aerospace, an Irvine, California-based firm that provides IFEC solutions for the short-haul market. Instead, he sought to inform me about Orbis, a charity whose mission is to cure blind children and adults in impoverished nations around the world.

Orbis is perhaps best known in the aviation world for its Flying Eye Hospital, a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10, which is specially fitted with a state-of-the-art surgical suite and teaching facility. On board this aircraft, doctors cure everything from Trachoma to congenital cataracts, while training local medical technicians to do the same.

But the non-profit organization also operates permanent offices and long-term facilities around the world to ensure its work continues unabated even after the venerable DC-10 returns to the skies. The operation is, as you can imagine, a massive undertaking, and massively expensive. Volunteering - be it people, services or things - are key to the success of Orbis, but so are financial donations.

Since my chat with Mark at WAEA in October 2009, I have visited Orbis at its New York headquarters and written about the charity for Flight International magazine's Christmas issue. While in Los Angeles for a recent WAEA single focus workshop, I took advantage of my close proximity to Irvine to visit with Orbis president Jack McHale, a true aviation industry veteran (and a real character, as the Irish say), whose enthusiasm for Orbis' work is infectious. So infectious, in fact, that I've found myself thinking about Orbis quite a lot these days, and I wonder if there isn't something that the IFEC industry can do to help. Who better to appreciate sight than the men and women who work in this highly visual industry?

Meanwhile, this journalist is looking forward to seeing some pretty amazing aircraft interiors and IFEC at the annual Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg this week (follow all the news, video and images of the show at the Flightglobal landing page and on Twitter via the hashtag #HAM10. If you pull me aside for a chat, I'd like to tell you about a charity named Orbis.

It is no secret that Inmarsat would like to see manufacturers come down on pricing on the hardware that supports its SwiftBroadband aeronautical service.

Indeed, a Cobham executive recently divulged that Inmarsat's equipment cost target for end users of its new SwiftBroadband 200 (SB200) service for small aircraft is $25,000. And, he said, "We're seriously looking at ways to achieve it."

How forthcoming!

Inmarsat has not confirmed these figures, but Inmarsat head of aeronautical marketing business Lars Ringertz says: "From an Inmarsat perspective, we expect SB200 to provide smaller equipment and better value for the end user."

SB200, which will provide standard IP data up to 200 kbps, circuit-switched voice telephony, and streaming IP data up to 16kbps, means that the little guys - like the Embraer Phenoms and Bombardier Dash 8 turboprops - can finally play in the higher-bandwidth connectivity space.

The first kits to support SB200 are shortly coming to market, and it's logical to assume that these won't be nearly as cheap as Inmarsat would like. That should change down the road, however, as suppliers build systems to fulfill Inmarsat's spec for SB200.

But if Cobham and others - Thrane & Thrane and Aircell, for instance - ultimately succeed in driving the price WAY DOWN, what does this mean for Iridium's future prospects?

Iridium is like the scrappy runt of the puppy litter. He can't jump quite as high or bark quite as loud as his brothers and sisters, but he can wag his tail from one corner of the pen to the other and doesn't cost near as much as his high-priced siblings (and cost can be a showstopper sometimes).

Sure, Iridium's current data capability of 2.4 kbps doesn't garner much mainstream attention. But the firm has recently been scoring some headlines with OpenPort, a 128 kbps service originally engineered for the maritime market that is being adapted by JetBlue Airways subsidiary LiveTV to provide airlines with a cost-effective, pay-per-megabyte plan called Kiteline World.
 
And Iridium's second-generation satellite constellation, called Iridium NEXT, is expected to provide data rates of up to 1.0 mbps. This opens up the possibility of supplying airlines with higher-speed service than currently on offer from the company, while retaining low costs, according to Iridium.

Iridium is targeting 2014 for initial launch of Iridium NEXT. But if cheaper and smaller SwiftBroadband kits come available - and if Inmarsat manages to keep pricing levels the same with these said kits - should Iridium bother?

The following chart arranged by an industry stakeholder, and obtained by RWG in the midst of a perfect storm, will give you a better idea of the weight and cost associated with the different connectivity solutions on offer today. Let me hear it now, E to the G to the A to the D to the S!

Airbus is keen to work with Boeing on a standard for measuring seat comfort.

Passenger comfort, you say, do the airframers really give a damn? Well, apparently they do. And they will be discussing it at the forthcoming WAEA IFE/seats single focus workshop in Hamburg. (Whether or not your hometown airline gives a damn is a different matter entirely.)

To understand what influences passenger comfort, especially in advance of the workshop, check out interiors expert Prof.Peter Vink's two recent presentations on the subject.

Airbus hasn't yet decided what type of window technology it will use on the A350 XWB, which is scheduled to enter into service in 2013.

Here is where Airbus stands on the issue:

"We call it a 'Controllable Sunlight Blocking System' precisely because we have not yet finalized the technology between electrically dimmable windows (similar to 787) and electromechanical window shades (similar to A380).

"When we decide (and we are not under pressure, as the technology of the dimmable solution is still maturing), they will be optional not basic, in line with our customers' expectations."

Updated to include comment from Tecom (and a proper photo).

Southwest Airlines has turned on in-flight Wi-Fi abroad its first non-test aircraft, RWG can reveal.

In an internal email to employees, Southwest says: "Wi-Fi: It's ON!"

Aircraft N910WN, pictured above, is the first "official" Row 44-equipped Southwest aircraft, according to Southwest, which tested Row 44's system on four 737s.

We know that Row 44 recently selected Tecom/Qest to provide their KuStream 1000 Ku-band antenna system for Southwest's fleet.

Southwest now says its Wi-Fi service has been "given the green light" and that the four test programme aircraft (which carry Aerosat antennas) will be re-fitted soon.

Update: Tecom vice president of sales and marketing Raju Chandra tells RWG this evening that indeed the KuStream 1000 antenna is installed on the fifth Southwest aircraft. 

He also confirms that the KuStream 1000 "has received all requisite approvals" and that the firm believes the antenna will be refitted to the original four test aircraft.

I got up close and personal with the KuStream 1000 at last year's WAEA conference and exhibition in Palm Springs.
 

(Photo at top from Krishull's Flickr photo stream)

Embraer recently discussed how in-flight connectivity will play a key role in the next new "intelligent" commercial aircraft it brings to market.

Now the Brazilian airframer has made a March 2010 technology presentation available to the public. The presentation provides a more graphical idea of what Embraer's larger technology development strategy entails (while sadly holding back on the really juicy bits).

It's still worth a look, however. Embraer is expected to decide by year-end whether or not to bring a clean-sheet aircraft to market, or re-engine and add new technology to its current E-Jets.

Aircell is notoriously closed-lipped about its usage stats on individual airlines. But during the recent AEA International Convention and Trade Show in Orlando, company director of project management Alan Mak threw out some info, including the above factoids.

Check out Aero-TV's video of Mak's presentation below. Then scroll down for Aero-TV's interview with Aircell executive VP and general manager John Wade, who speaks about the ease of installing Aircell's air-to-ground (ATG)-based system on business aircraft, and how the Aircell box will get "smaller and smaller" to extend down to the general aviation market.

Somewhat disjointedly, the second video goes off topic at about the 1:50 mark for an Avidyne advert, but jumps back to Aircell at the 2:24 mark. You'll also get hit with a Cirrus advert, but after that, Wade talks about Aircell's "crystal ball".

Air New Zealand has released a swell new video about its new Panasonic IFE system. Check out the "screen share" feature (and monitor what your kids are watching in-flight!).

Last year, the tension between Airbus and Panasonic Avionics seemed fierce. The two parties had yet to reach agreement on offerability for Panasonic's Ku-band satellite-based Global Communications Suite - with AeroMobile mobile connectivity - for Airbus long-range aircraft, including the A350.

At that time, some industry stakeholders accused Airbus of playing favourites by only making Airbus/SITA joint venture OnAir's connectivity solution offerable on long-range aircraft. Airbus countered that off-aircraft connectivity had become more non-IFE related "and more related to cockpit and flight-critical communications".

Fast-forward to 2010, and offerability on the A350, at least, has been sorted out. As reported in February, Panasonic's Global Communications suite is offerable on the A350. As reported last week, the Global Communications suite will be operated via Panasonic's connectivity platform - one of three solutions on offer (see below).

So how did the two parties meet eye-to-eye? Hadn't Airbus wanted Panasonic to integrate with its own ALNA V2 platform?

A source tells RWG that, in the case of the A350, the Panasonic system connects to FSA-NG via the comms manager to use Inmarsat's SwiftBroadband for operational data. The Panasonic system connects direct to Ku for IFE only data.

However, another solution sees Panasonic IFE operated with Airbus' ALNA V2 platform and OnAir mobile and Wi-Fi connectivity.

Essentially, Airbus has standardized the interfaces that matter the most to the airframer (such as toilets and galleys, as previously discussed on this blog) while not confining the suppliers' innovation in the seat or IFE.
 
That's very good news to A350 airline customers that want to offer Panasonic's high-speed Internet solution to passengers. Now what about those other Airbus types?

Here are the three initial IFEC choices for A350 customers (the Thales deal is in the process of being finalized):

Airbus' modular approach to the A350 XWB cabin isn't limited to toilets. During a recent update, the European airframer also detailed its plans for the widebody aircraft's galleys, which have been designed by B/E Aerospace.

Check out Airbus' vision for supplier furnished galleys, plus a handy slide detailing the A350 catalogue process (click on each slide to enlarge).