APEX Expo 2018: The round-up

Since the Boston Tea Party of 1773, Massachusetts’s principal city has been no stranger to important gatherings. And so it was last week, as the city hosted this year’s APEX Expo – aviation’s biggest passenger experience event.

For four days, over 3,000 industry professionals attended seminars, meetings and displays of airline-related technologies, products and services, all aimed at increasing airline pax ex worldwide.

As Inmarsat’s annual Inflight Connectivity Surveys have consistently demonstrated, connectivity is central to the modern-day flyer’s experience. Unsurprisingly, then, talk of IFC was everywhere at APEX EXPO.

Here’s how it went down…

Inmarsat’s VP Marketing Comms and Strategy, Dominic Walters, was quick to highlight the benefits of meeting customers and partners from around the world.

Day One

An early highlight for Inmarsat was the announcement that Aircalin had chosen its next-generation IFC solution, GX Aviation, to power its partner SITAOnAir’s InternetONAIR portal

GetConnected said the deal with Inmarsat demonstrated Aircalin’s “strong commitment to provide passengers with the best-possible inflight experience.”

Day Two

Inmarsat’s landmark strategic collaboration with Panasonic dominated much of the second day.

The deal will create a best-in-class IFC solution for the next generation of connected aircraft, for the benefit of manufacturers, airlines and their passengers worldwide.

Following a media breakfast, hosted by Inmarsat and Panasonic, GetConnected outline what this strategic agreement means. ‘No one really saw this agreement coming,’ it says.

Panasonic showed that it’s not just start-ups that disrupt

For Rockwell Collins it’s all about GX Aviation.

There was more to celebrate in the evening as Inmarsat’s celebrated partnership with Air New Zealand and Panasonic to deliver IFC won the Best Inflight Connectivity award at the APEX Awards.

Day Three

An exceptional Bring Your Own Device connectivity offering for passengers across Citilink Indonesia’s fleet-wide Airbus A320 aircraft was something to mark. The agreement sees Mahata AeroTecknologi enter a 10-year partnership with the LCC, with GMF AeroAsia signed up as installation partner.

Partnerships are essential to Inmarsat’s success, and this event helps highlight that.

In light of Inmarsat’s tie-up with Panasonic it was telling that aviation journalist Seth Miller enthused about some of Panasonic’s new cool tech.

Fellow writer, Jason Rabinowitz, was equally taken with some of Panasonic’s imminent IFE offerings.

And the burgeoning wellness market should prove to be a lucrative differential for Panasonic when it comes to passenger experience.

EAD Aerospace was in attendance demonstrating the capabilities of its Satcom Universal Mounting System for Honeywell’s JetWave antenna.

A final take home for day three from Lufthansa.

Day Four

An industry – and old friends – coming together seemed a good time for SITAOnAir to mark the first anniversary of GX Aviation powering connectivity for Singapore Airlines.

And its Chief Technology Officer outlined why GX Aviation was proving its worth for both Singapore Airlines and Philippine Airlines, stating that it was good for passenger experience.

For some, coffee was now vital for getting through the last day…

The potential of the connected aircraft was still on everyone’s lips.

The theme continued down the eastern seaboard as in Washington DC, the city’s esteemed newspaper, The Washington Post, was also debating the idea of a Connected Aircraft. Honeywell Aerospace’s Kristin Slyker was one of the experts.

Inmarsat partner Deutsche Telekom had much to celebrate, walking off with the APEX Cool Award for the latest version of its mobile app that speeds up the online payment process.

And that’s a wrap

Until next time…

But for some, getting home proved rather emotional.

A reminder that there are good guys and girls throughout the industry. Bravo, APEX.