Annapolis, Maryland—ARINC Direct announced it will deploy its popular SKYLinkSM ultra-high speed satellite broadband service for business aircraft…
Annapolis, Maryland—ARINC Direct announced it will deploy its popular SKYLinkSM ultra-high speed satellite broadband service for business aircraft in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) by the end of this year. The company has obtained operating licenses for SKYLink in nine European countries and will deploy Ku-band satellite coverage by the end of December.
SKYLink service coverage in the North Atlantic flight tracks will follow in the first quarter of 2006.
“We have focused our initial licensing efforts on the European countries that represent the highest proportion of business aircraft flights,” stated Robert Thompson, ARINC Senior Director, Satellite Services. “We plan to extend SKYLink coverage to 16 additional EMEA countries as early as the first quarter of 2006.”
SKYLink is the world’s first in-flight ultra-high speed satellite broadband service for business aircraft. It provides true high-speed Internet and corporate network connections in flight, turning the corporate jet into an “office in the sky.”
Satellite network access in EMEA is being provided by ViaSat, Inc.and Skylogic, S.p.A. (a wholly owned subsidiary of Eutelsat, SA) who have teamed to offer SKYLink compatible mobile broadband satellite access services in the EMEA region. ViaSat also developed and manufactures the SKYLink avionics for ARINC.
“Today’s international businesses need international connectivity in flight,” continued Thompson. “Only SKYLink delivers the bandwidth they need for ultra-high speed Internet, corporate networks, E-mail, fax and Voice over IP, Fax over IP (FoIP) and future applications like videoconferencing.”
SKYLink’s European service will be deployed first in France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom, Ireland, and Switzerland. When additional licensing activities are complete and SKYLink satellite coverage is available on the North Atlantic air routes in first quarter of 2006, SKYLink users will have continuous coverage from the West Coast of the United States all the way into the Middle East. Over 80% of the world’s large business aircraft are home-based in this SKYLink service coverage area.
SKYLink technology is available from Gulfstream Aviation as Gulfstream Broad Band Multi-Link (BBML). It is offered as original equipment on G350, G450, G500, and G550 business jets, and as a retrofit installation on all large-cabin Gulfstream aircraft in current production. Gulfstream can also install SKYLink on other business aircraft through its General Dynamics Aviation Services facilities.
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