Insight | NBAA 2016 Jet ConneX steals the show
Aviation
No time was wasted on the opening day of NBAA-BACE 2016 as Inmarsat announced the highly anticipated introduction of their latest in-flight broadband service, Jet ConneX. Read on for highlights from day one.
It brought Inmarsat great pleasure to announce the Commercial Service Introduction of Jet ConneX – Inmarsat’s next generation in-flight broadband service for business aviation customers. Jet ConneX is designed to transform the private jet experience by offering passengers an onboard connectivity service that is reliable, high-speed and on par with broadband available on the ground.
Kurt Weidemeyer, Inmarsat’s Vice President of Business and General Aviation, was excited to share the announcement with the industry. He said, “Jet ConneX has been developed over a number of years as a transformative connectivity service for the business aviation industry. Interest from the market has been overwhelming and we are delighted to have now reached the exciting milestone of commercial service introduction.”
Jet ConneX customers will be able to sit back and enjoy streaming Netflix, while sending emails, and text messages – all simultaneously while flying at 500mph. It gives a whole new meaning to cloud-based office solutions.
According to Honeywell’s recent 25th annual Global Business Aviation Outlook the business aviation industry continues to face a slow near-term pace of orders, while the midterm looks stronger. This is due to a slow-growth economic environment across many global markets along with many political uncertainties A key global finding from the outlook showed that 2017 deliveries are projected to be slightly lower, however this does reflect the transitions to new models slated for late 2017 and 2018 service entry. While business may be slow in the short term, the demand for the 2017/18 models means the mid term looks healthy.
As well as announcing the introduction of Jet ConneX, we can bring the news that the service is now available on all Dassault Aviation aircraft. The milestone was achieved after existing radomes for Dassault Aviation’s 7X/8X and aftermarket F900 aircraft group aircraft were tested and authorised to operate with the exclusive JetWave Ka-band hardware, manufactured by Inmarsat’s partner Honeywell for the Jet ConneX service.
Jet ConneX global data plans are now available for Dassault Aviation aircraft and significantly exceed other existing satcom offerings in the market, including Ku-band services.
You can find Honeywell’s 25th annual Global Business Aviation Outlook in full here.
With Inmarsat kicking-off day one of NBAA-BACE 2016 with the arrival of Jet ConneX, day two saw plenty of big announcements regarding the next generation system. Read on for highlights from day two.
Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation today revealed they are incorporating Inmarsat’s Jet ConneX into their large-cabin aircraft. Once installed – which they’re planning for early 2017 - passengers can look forward to the same high quality broadband in the sky as they experience on the ground.
“Jet ConneX provides high-speed Wi-Fi service that is up to 34 times faster than that some of our operators currently have,” said Mark Burns, President of Gulfstream. “Passengers will be able to stream videos, make and receive phone calls on their personal smartphones and watch live television almost anywhere.”
The hardware used to link Jet ConneX with Gulfstream’s aircraft is supplied by Honeywell. Gulfstream and Honeywell partnered to begin flight testing of Jet ConneX on a Honeywell-owned G650 in July 2016. Their in-service evaluation, which is ongoing for several aircraft, will continue until mid-2017.
For those at NBAA-BACE 2016 lookout for Gulfstream’s G650ER and G500 demonstration aircraft, which feature Jet ConneX.
"Jet ConneX provides high-speed Wi-Fi service that is up to 34 times faster than that some of our operators currently have"
Bombardier announced today that it has begun deliveries of the first new Global aircraft equipped with the fastest in-flight Internet access in business aviation. The new Ka-band system is powered by Honeywell’s JetWaveTM Satcom system and features Inmarsat’s new Jet Connex service. Customers onboard Global aircraft will now enjoy the Internet, streaming online media or staging videoconferences as quickly and effortlessly as they would in the office or home.
Paul Sislian, Chief Operating Officer for Bombardier Business Aircraft said, “Customers routinely rank connectivity as the most sought-after cabin service, and Bombardier’s Ka-band system is a further example of how we are leading the industry in delivering the ultimate cabin experience to our customers.”
The partnership between Bombardier and Inmarsat is being viewed as a significant milestone in business aviation. “Our Jet ConneX broadband service with seamless worldwide coverage is a central component in this ground-breaking solution”, said Kurt Weidemeyer, Vice President, Business Aviation at Inmarsat. “The ultra-long-range Global aircraft can link virtually any key city pair worldwide, non-stop, an Bombardier’s Ka-band system is powerful enough to deliver consistent coverage at speeds previously unheard of in business aviation.”
As we draw to the end of a successful and eye-opening NBAA-BACE 2016, it’s clear the aviation industry is ready for the next generation of in-flight connectivity. Read on for highlights from the event.
On day one of NBAA-BACE 2016 Inmarsat announced the Commercial Service Introduction of Jet ConneX – Inmarsat’s next generation in-flight broadband service for business aviation customers. Jet ConneX is designed to transform the private jet experience by offering passengers an onboard connectivity service that is reliable, high-speed and on par with broadband available on the ground. The launch received a fantastic reaction as Aviation International News, Flight Global and Aviation Week all broke the news with the aviation industry.
Kurt Weidemeyer, Inmarsat’s Vice President of Business and General Aviation said, “Jet ConneX has been developed over a number of years as a transformative connectivity service for the business aviation industry. Interest from the market has been overwhelming and we are delighted to have now reached the exciting milestone of commercial service introduction.”
It didn’t take long for Jet ConneX to become a key talking point at the event. By the end of day two both Bombardier and Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation had announced they are incorporating Inmarsat’s Jet ConneX into a range of their aircraft. Speaking to Aviation International News, Kurt Weidemeyer said, “We could not hold back the floodgates any longer because customers are demanding the service.”
Mark Burns, President of Gulfstream was particularly impressed with Inmarsat’s Jet ConneX system. He said, “Jet ConneX provides high-speed Wi-Fi service that is up to 34 times faster than that some of our operators currently have.”
The industry is excited for the next generation of in-flight connectivity and Inmarsat is ready to deliver it.
"Jet ConneX provides high-speed Wi-Fi service that is up to 34 times faster than that some of our operators currently have"
Just before NBAA-BACE 2016 got underway Honeywell released their 25th annual Global Business Aviation Outlook, which showed the business aviation industry continuing to face a slow-near term pace of orders. However, according to the outlook this is mainly due to the transition to new models slated for late 2017 and 2018 service entry. While business may be slow in the short term, the mid term looks healthy. Other key global findings in the 2016 Honeywell outlook include:
