Aeromexico is retrofitting its Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet with what Viasat calls its “most advanced” inflight Wi-Fi solution, in a move that will displace Panasonic Avionics’ connectivity kit aboard some of these twinjets.
The 17-strong Dreamliner fleet comprises eight 787-8s and nine 787-9s. Viasat says in a statement that the 787-8s will be equipped first, with installation for the 787-9s quickly following. The first of these newly-fitted aircraft is set to enter service later in 2025.
Since 2018, Viasat has provided its high-capacity Ka-band satellite-supported IFC solution on Aeromexico’s new Boeing MAX aircraft. The satellite operator and aero ISP is also understood to have already fitted at least one but possibly more of Aeromexico’s 787s with Viasat Ka, with the ability to support streaming video, browsing and messaging. Viasat management disclosed an initial 787 IFC deal with Aeromexico amid the Covid pandemic, back in 2020.
Financial terms of the agreement between Aeromexico and Viasat have not been disclosed.
The airline’s chief of digital & customer experience officer Andrés Castañeda, who also serves as EVP of Aeromexico, notes that: “Viasat is a trusted provider for Aeromexico, and with a resilient, multi-orbit satellite roadmap, we look forward to continuing to work together to bring high quality in-flight Wi-Fi to our customers long into the future.”
Additionally, Aeromexico is using the Viasat Ads platform to offer its passengers free, ad-supported connectivity sessions (with streaming-capable speeds.)
With respect to Castañeda’s reference to Viasat’s “multi-orbit” roadmap, Viasat currently uses geostationary (GEO) satellite capacity in aero, but is in advanced talks with Telesat for Lightspeed LEO capacity.
Aeromexico has traditionally taken a multi-source approach to IFC.
In 2014, the carrier announced it had tapped Panasonic’s Ku-band IFC for its 787-8s. Two years later, it added Panasonic’s live television service to the twinjets. (Through the years, Panasonic has historically benefitted from the fact that its traditional Ku-band gimbaled antenna solution enjoys linefit offerability across Boeing’s portfolio.)
Aeromexico is also a customer of Intelsat 2Ku, having launched the service nearly nine years ago on its 737-800s.
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Featured image credited to Aeromexico
