Page 25 - AAA SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2016 Online Magazine

FEATURE IFE

internet or make and receive phone calls. The latest Evolution it feels to fly in one of their planes.
Both WiFi and mobile telephony services Airbus’ A350 XWB is the first jetliner While these are mainly for airlines to
are praised by passengers especially when to integrate fourth-generation in-flight experience what a manufacturer’s plane is
travelling for business purposes. entertainment systems from the beginning. like, aircraft makers are predicting virtual
Cabin crew can easily manage the service Incorporating high-bandwidth fibre optics, reality technology will be incorporated within
and have the option of selecting a “voice-off” high-definition video becomes a reality for all cabins soon.
mode to restrict cell-phone usage to data passengers on the A350 XWB, with individual “The consumer market is taking off and
services only (SMS, email, mobile internet). seat monitors upgraded to new standards people who are keen on this tech expect
Passengers’ feedback shows the service is – beginning with screens of up to 12-inch in people like Airbus as industry leaders to be
a tremendous success, further consolidated economy class. aware of this, and I do foresee in the near
by the very rapidly expanding market base of “In addition to delivering an unmatched future an opportunity for our customers
the Airbus connectivity solution. viewing and listening experience, fourth- to potentially have this in their cabin,” Andy
The scope of connectivity applications generation in-flight entertainment systems Anderson, deputy chief technology officer at
enables airlines to reach passengers do away with bulky under-seat control boxes Airbus, told CNBC in a recent interview.
personally in flight and to generate that many times block passenger legroom – “For a passenger inside the plane, imagine
ancillary revenues. Thanks to its unique while combined data and power cables are being able to put on the headset and project
communication management, it also serves accommodated under a now-flat cabin floor,” a whole world across the roof of the cabin
airline administrative and operational the Airbus official says. and allow them to fly underneath the stars, or
communications, as illustrated by crew mail, allow them to see a movie, it’s a new platform
digital cabin logbook, documentation viewer, Virtual Reality and Netflix for innovation,” CNBC quoted Anderson as
telemedicine, credit card authentication, All of the big players in the connectivity saying.
on-board rescheduling of traveller flight space – the likes of Gogo, GEE, Panasonic The technology has already been
connections, with more applications to Avionics, Inmarsat and ViaSat to name just tested by one airline, the CNBC report said.
be accessible wirelessly from cabin crew a few – are making significant investments Last year, Australian airline Qantas tested
devices in the near future. in providing the infrastructure for the next providing VR headsets to its first class
Airbus officials claim that by far the generation of in-flight connectivity, which will passengers on select routes. New movies
airframe offers the most comprehensive enable airlines to satisfy this demand for an were shown as well as Qantas products for
combination of connectivity solutions with online experience akin to what they’re used passengers to look at.
different in-flight entertainment suppliers. to at home or in the office. Virtual reality is taking off with a number
“The A350 XWB native connectivity Virtual reality and streaming content of electronics makers from Samsung to
for instance is illustrated by its standard from sites like Netflix is the future of IFE, HTC all releasing headsets recently. Total
SBB satcom and by the unique freedom of replacing tiny screens in the back of chairs. shipment of virtual reality hardware is
choice it offers to customers: ALNA, Thales During the Farnborough Airshow several expected to reach 64.8 million units in 2020,
TopConnect (Ka Band) and Panasonic Global companies had showcased virtual reality up from 9.6 million this year, according to
Communication Suite (Ku Band),” says an stations around their stands highlighting IDC. Sales of VR hardware are expected to
official. what the inside of their jets look like and how generate $2.3 billion of revenues in 2016.
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