Newcomer SmartSky is a formidable air-to-ground IFE challenger to incumbent Gogo. Both firms are betting on 5G cellular technology for their futures.
In theory, GEO satellites can cover about 80 degrees north and south, and east and west of the Earth’s surface from their parking spots above the equator. Thus, a con- stellation of three GEO satellites stationed 120 degrees apart above the equator should be able to provide Sat- Com coverage to the most heavily traveled international air routes over land and water. Low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations poten- tially can provide worldwide coverage because they re- volve around every part of the globe, including the North and South poles. Because of line-of-sight limitations as- sociated with LEO satellites, it takes a constellation of several orbiting space vehicles to provide full coverage. Each satellite stays in view for only minutes, so the Sat- Com connection is handed off to the next satellite that comes into view in time to prevent signal interruption. LEO satellites also are cross-linked so that SatCom com- munications are passed from satellite to satellite until one or more is in view of a ground station that ties into the internet. In practice, international licensing agreements limit the geographic areas where GEO and LEO operators can provide SatCom services. Within those permitted ar- eas, GEO and LEO operators typically concentrate most signal power where they have the most customer de- mand. And subscribers to one SatCom provider usually don’t have access to other, adjacent constellations once their aircraft fly out of the main provider’s licensed geo- graphic area. The price of ATG or SatCom avionics and subscriptions typically is proportionate to connection speed and coverage area.
AIR-TO-GROUND ATG equipment typically can be used above 3,000 feet agl—higher if you’re at an airport surrounded by high terrain. On the ground, most routers used with ATG sys- tems are fitted with mobile phone network SIM cards and Wi-Fi transceivers for connectivity before depar- ture and after landing. Currently, there are two main ATG competitors, and both serve business aircraft flying over the U.S. The reigning champion is Gogo Business Aviation (former- ly Aircell) based in Broomfield, Colorado. It revolu- tionized air-to-ground communications in 2008 when it launched its 3G system, affording internet access to both GA aircraft and commercial airliners. Starting in 2013, business aircraft pilots and passengers also could use Gogo’s Text & Talk app to make VoIP calls using their mobile phones, a capability denied airline customers be- cause of Federal Communications Commission rules. Gogo’s 3G ATG was a smash sales success, but that also resulted in completely overwhelming its system capacity. All Gogo customers had to share just 4 megahertz of the firm’s licensed bandwidth in the 800 MHz UHF frequen- cy range. In addition, 3G uses the now-obsolete code division multiple access (CDMA) spread-spectrum digital stan- dard, patented and popularized by Qualcomm. Much of the capacity roadblock was removed when Gogo’s long-term evolution (LTE) 4G AVANCE system became available in 2017. This abandons 3G’s CDMA network standard for 4G’s newer and considerably high- er capacity OFDM data communications standard, re-
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