Onboard connectivity

Development of high-throughput technologies facilitates next-generation passenger connectivity for phones and computers.

There comes a point in the development of most new aerospace technologies that the engineers who developed them must end their lab testing and limited in-flight demonstrations and release them to the market, like parents watching their firstborn load up his or her car and drive away to college.

That is the point at which the onboard connectivity industry stands today. Companies and airlines have spent the last couple years demonstrating a variety of connectivity technologies onboard a handful of aircraft that let business travelers link their laptops or Blackberry devices to the Internet or leisure travelers surf the Web on their iPhones. With the technology proven to the satisfaction of airlines and regulatory agencies such as the FAA and FCC, full-blown fleet deployments are now under way in carriers ranging from SouthwesAirlines to Emirates.