Honeywell & Gogo Heat Up Their Head-To-Head In-Flight Connectivity Battle–Using the Business-End of Aviation

Competitors in the In-Flight Connectivity market keep pushing forward to expand their reach.

Last week, Gogo announced a partnership with T-Mobile US to offer text messaging service on commercial aircraft to passengers who have T-Mobile accounts, a move which might be described as Gogo setting itself up to contend with the AT&T/Honeywell Inflight-Connectivity product when it premieres some time next year. It is also a move which gives OnAir another reason to argue for opening up the skies to mobile connections.

Commercial airline service is a tricky market for all the players, but private jets are on the rise and the business of business aviation is looking good. It is therefore no surprise to find heavy competition for communications services in this sector too.

Today, Honeywell announced that it has entered into a contract with Bombardier Business Aircraft to launch a new JetWave Ka-Band satellite connectivity system. The Honeywell JetWave will support Inmarsat’s upcoming Jet ConneX (JX) service which will go live in 2015 and give business jet passengers near-global, high-speed connections.

“With JetWave securing the backing of a leading business jet manufacturer in Bombardier, we celebrate a major milestone in the evolution of business aircraft connectivity,” said Brian Sill, president, Business and General Aviation, Honeywell Aerospace. “The industry is showing a clear desire for high speed, global, consistent in-flight connectivity and is turning to Honeywell and Inmarsat to deliver it.”

“Our customers want to be online everywhere they go. They will now experience the same level of connectivity in the air that they have come to expect on the ground without a drop in connectivity performance once they leave their homes or offices,” said Eric Martel, president, Bombardier Business Aircraft. “The introduction of this technology allows us to further strengthen the industry-leading cabin experience that we are offering to our customers.”

Gogo recently re-branded its Aircell business as Gogo Business Aviation, and asserted it is: “The only company to offer all three of business aviation’s most popular network technologies – Gogo Biz®, SwiftBroadband and Iridium – the company offers solutions to fulfil any customer need, aircraft type or geography.”

Featured Image: Private Jet Passengers Using Gogo’s In-Flight Connectivity