Inmarsat and Deutsche Telekom are celebrating the third anniversary of commercial in-flight broadband offering of their European Aviation Network (EAN) to airline customers. To date, over 50 million passengers have accessed the broadband connectivity solution on over 420,000 flights across the continent with British Airways, Iberia, Vueling and Aegean.
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EAN has now been activated on over 265 aircraft, including the entire British Airways short-haul fleet. These numbers will continue to grow in the coming years as the final rollout progresses with Iberia and Vueling – both members of the International Airlines Group (IAG) alongside British Airways – in addition to all existing and new Airbus A320s. of the Greek national carrier Aegean. and A321 aircraft.
EAN combines dedicated satellite coverage with a complementary LTE-based terrestrial network. EAN was developed by Inmarsat and Deutsche Telekom, in partnership with leading European companies such as Thales, Nokia, Airbus, Cobham and Eclipse Technics. Specifically designed to meet the needs of European aviation, it delivers the fastest speeds over one of the busiest airspaces in the world, along with fast installation times and easy scalability.
EAN’s popularity soared to new heights last year, with Inmarsat reporting record usage as passengers returned to the skies. This lines up with Inmarsat’s latest passenger confidence survey, which found that 41% of 10,000 respondents believed in-flight Wi-Fi had gained even more importance post-pandemic. The results also indicated that digital solutions that keep passengers connected and minimize their contact with cabin crew and other travelers help build traveler confidence.
Philippe Carette, President of Inmarsat Aviation, said: “In March 2019, British Airways became the first airline to market our EAN inflight broadband service for passengers. It has since been joined by Iberia, Vueling and more recently Aegean, all of which have been able to delight passengers with the highest level of connectivity on short and medium-haul flights. EAN has played an important role in improving their onboard experience, opening up new revenue opportunities for airlines and instilling greater confidence in post-pandemic air travel. We are delighted to celebrate this anniversary with our partners and customers, especially at a time when passenger EAN usage is now higher than ever, showing an increased desire to stay connected post Covid- 19. »
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