Cloud-based content management and edge-caching are seeing momentum in the skies, with Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian revealing at CES 2025 that the US major has selected Thales’ new FlytEDGE solution — together with the firm’s 4K QLED HDR in-seat displays and Bluetooth capabilities in all cabins — for select new aircraft arriving in 2026. The system will form the backbone of Delta’s next-generation Delta Sync seatback experience, which is moving towards a more connected reality for passengers.
FlytEDGE leverages Thales’ Crystal Cabin Award-winning Onboard Data Center (ODC) and a partnership with Netskrt Systems to enable the cloud-based content management and onboard edge caching functionality. Based on blade server technology, the ODC boasts 96TB of storage, setting the stage for Delta to bring large volumes of content and instant streaming experiences to passengers.
With this technology, Delta can “constantly adapt the passenger interface with new features and curated entertainment at every seat” and enable quick integration of its digital partners, “allowing the airline to seamlessly bring-in services for a personalized touch at an unprecedented speed and efficiency,” according to Thales.
For the uninitiated, edge caching in the inflight context gives the ability to store new information (e.g. streaming video) locally after it has been accessed online by a passenger. This ensures that when other users on the flight want to watch the same content, it does not have to be ferried over the costly inflight connectivity pipe each subsequent time, allowing the airline to rapidly provide access.
Given that Delta has been rolling out free Wi-Fi for SkyMiles members on mainline aircraft as part of its Delta Sync ecosystem as powered by Viasat — a program that Bastian assures will be completed this year — the SkyTeam Alliance member’s move to edge-cache some content makes perfect sense, especially if it wants to ensure that the complimentary Internet browsing experience is not affected when a large volume of passengers seek to access the same live streaming content over the connectivity pipe.
Delta is already nailing down those streaming partnerships. It presently offers Paramount+ as cached content but packaged much like the direct-to-consumer model. Bastian revealed at CES 2025 that SkyMiles members will also soon enjoy their favorite YouTube creators, podcasts and music artists ad-free while onboard most flights with Delta Sync Wi-Fi and Delta Sync seatback.
This arrangement with YouTube, which is not tied exclusively to the Thales FlytEDGE IFE announcement, brings Delta closer to supporting an at-home entertainment experience onboard. In short, it will be available on all flights where the Delta Sync Wi-Fi and seatback ecosystems are available.
However, FlytEDGE might position Delta to take this YouTube shorts experience, or indeed other potential new streaming partnerships, to the next level when the new IFE system does arrive in 2026 — reportedly on new Airbus A350-1000, A321neo and Boeing 737 MAX 10 twinjets. At that time, passengers using the new IFE system can expect some new features, described by Delta and Thales as:
Onboard Experience Planner
Seatback features like “Do Not Disturb” mode that give travellers more control over their journey and enables Delta to deliver the exceptional service they are known for.
Future enhancements will include features like guided wellness, expanded options for customizing the food and beverage experience and other expert guidance designed to make every trip the best it can be.
Seatback Announcement Translation
Enables customers to understand crucial flight information, no matter their first language, and makes the travel experience more accessible to customers with hearing disabilities.
Provides flight attendants with the ability to send messages to seatback displays in the passenger’s preferred language, a step forward in delivering dynamic in-flight communication capabilities.
Arrival Mode
Integrates essential day-of travel information from the Fly Delta app directly into the seatback environment. This enhancement ensures SkyMiles Members have the information they need, across devices, to confidently transition to the next step of their journey — whether it’s making a connecting flight or arranging ground transportation at their final destination.
Announcement translation is expected to be a particularly welcome feature, bolstering accessibility.
“Technology has the power to transform travel and create moments for our customers to enjoy the journey as much as the destination,” said Bastian. “Whether through fast, free Wi-Fi, our industry-leading seatback screens or any of the other personalized channels in Delta’s digital ecosystem, we’re committed to creating a seamless and enriching experience for our SkyMiles members.”
As previously announced, Delta tapped Hughes Network Systems to bring high-capacity Ka-band geostationary (GEO) satellite-powered inflight connectivity to the carrier’s regional jets and Boeing 717s via Hughes Jupiter In-Flight as supported by ThinKom Solutions’ Ka1717 VICTS antenna hardware.
However, the two parties are exploring a “first-of-its-kind in commercial aviation connectivity solution that will enable simultaneous multi-network connectivity, expected to fly onboard in late 2025”, Delta revealed from CES 2025.
That might mean that Delta is eyeing the Hughes Jupiter Fusion product whereby Hughes blends Ka-band GEO with Eutelsat OneWeb Ku-band LEO services in a multi-band, multi-orbit hybrid using ThinKom’s ThinAir Plus architecture. Should Delta take this specific approach, it would indeed be a first in industry.
Delta’s IFE + C announcements come as the US domestic travel arms race is heating up, with United Airlines accelerating both its installation of Panasonic Avionics seatback IFE aboard narrowbodies, and its fleet-wide adoption of SpaceX’s Starlink inflight connectivity service. United is also bringing Panasonic’s modular new OLED-based Astrova IFE to its new Boeing 787s and Airbus A321XLRs.
American Airlines, meanwhile, has continued to eschew seatback IFE for narrowbodies and free Wi-Fi in favor of a wireless IFE model, and paid Viasat-powered connectivity.
Delta is not the first FlytEDGE customer; Qatar Airways revealed last fall that it’s bringing FlytEDGE to its Airbus A321 NXs. And both Emirates and Ethiopian Airlines have adopted Thales’ new 4K QLED HDR displays.
Related Articles:
All images credited to Delta
