14 June 2017: Inmarsat, the world's leading provider of global mobile satellite communications, and Cobham SATCOM, the leading manufacturer of satellite communications solutions, today announced that United Airlines will participate in a technology evaluation of SwiftBroadband-Safety (SB-S), Inmarsat's next generation flight deck communications platform.

SB-S will be evaluated on four United Airlines' Boeing 767 aircraft, which will be installed with Cobham's AVIATOR 300D satcom system. It offers global, high-speed, secure connectivity for the flight deck. Enabling powerful and flexible communications with real-time inflight information, the service enhances airline safety, asset utilisation, security, and operations.

United Airlines' evaluation of the IP-based broadband service is part of the aviation giant's ongoing commitment to best-in-class operations, safety and service. During this evaluation, United Airlines will deploy its equipped planes in the highly congested North Atlantic airspace. It will use the new platform for communications and surveillance with Controller-Pilot Data Link Communications (CPDLC) and Automatic Dependent Surveillance Contract (ADS-C) messaging.

SB-S also provides a range of 'always on, always secure' applications, which United Airlines will be able to use. These include continual positional awareness for flight tracking, flight data streaming (known as "Black Box in the Cloud") and real-time electronic flight bag applications, such as networked graphical weather. Operational benefits include more fuel-efficient routes and the ability to transmit vital aircraft performance and positioning data in real time.

Installations of the AVIATOR 300D systems on United Airlines' planes are scheduled to commence later this year. The systems include Cobham's IGA-5001 Intermediate Gain Antenna and will use the AVIATOR 300D Supplemental Type Certificate developed by L2 Aviation.

Chuck Stewart, United Airlines Chief Technical Pilot for Communications, said: "United is excited about installing and using this powerful new communications capability as we expect to see it enhancing our operational efficiency, especially in places like the North Atlantic."

Andy Beers, Director, Global Aero Sales, Cobham SATCOM, said: "We are excited about this latest opportunity to contribute to the ongoing evaluation of SwiftBroadband-Safety as it supports our development of communication technologies Cobham SATCOM is rolling out to meet the future needs of the aviation community, particularly our AVIATOR S Series next generation product line, designed specifically to leverage Inmarsat's new SB-S services."

Captain Mary McMillan, Inmarsat Aviation Vice President of Safety and Operational Services, said: "As a progressive and innovative airline, United is making an important move anticipating the future of aviation. With SB-Safety's secure broadband platform, it will be able to benefit from the fully connected flight deck that delivers improved safety and security, better efficiency and optimised fleet performance."

Notes for Editors:

In June 2016, Airbus announced it selected SwiftBroadband-Safety and Cobham's AVIATOR S series avionics for the cockpit safety communications solution for its popular A320 and A330 families of aircraft.

In May 2017, Shenzhen Airlines announced its evaluation of the next-generation SwiftBroadband-Safety platform with Inmarsat and Cobham to address the needs of the rapidly-growing Chinese aviation market.

In November 2016, Inmarsat, Cobham and Hawaiian Airlines announced that SwiftBroadband-Safety and Cobham avionics had enabled in-air Electronic Flight bag connectivity for the first time with Hawaiian Airlines.

Watch Hawaiian Airlines pilots and Flight Operations leaders talk about the benefits of IP broadband in the flight deck in this video.

Thanks to satellite communications, airlines have saved over $3 billion in the last 15 years according to a recent Helios study.

Read more about the capabilities and benefits of Inmarsat's SwiftBroadband-Safety here.

White Papers

'SwiftBroadband-Safety: The Future of Aircraft Communications' can be downloaded  here.

'Black Box in the Cloud Solutions' can be downloaded here.

About Cobham SATCOM

Providing dependable communications and internet access anywhere under the most demanding conditions.

Our satellite and radio communication terminals perform in the most challenging and remote environments on land, at sea and in the air.

We design and manufacture these high performance products under the AVIATOR, EXPLORER, SAILOR and Sea Tel brands providing customers with outstanding performance, value and support through our global sales and service network.

About Cobham

The most important thing we build is trust.

Cobham is a leading global technology and services innovator, respected for providing solutions to the most challenging problems, from deep space to the depths of the ocean.

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About Inmarsat

Inmarsat plc is the leading provider of global mobile satellite communications services. Since 1979, Inmarsat has been providing reliable voice and high-speed data communications to governments, enterprises and other organizations, with a range of services that can be used on land, at sea or in the air. Inmarsat operates around the world, with a presence in the major ports and centres of commerce on every continent. Inmarsat is listed on the London Stock Exchange (ISAT.L). For more information, please visit www.inmarsat.com. 

The Inmarsat press release newsfeed and corporate updates are on @InmarsatGlobal.

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