WESTLAKE VILLAGE, California and MOSCOW | May 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ – Row 44, Inc., provider of the world’s leading In-Flight Broadband Entertainment Ecosystem, announced today that Transaero Airlines, Russia’s first private airline, will soon enable its passengers to enjoy broadband Internet access and innovative in-flight services aboard the company’s narrow-body and 767 fleets.

Transaero selected Row 44′s broadband entertainment platform to deliver a wide variety of in-flight services – ranging from true broadband Internet access to live television, e-commerce, video on demand, and bookable destination services. All services will be accessible through the passenger’s own Wi-Fi devices across the airline’s routes within and from Russia to North America, the Caribbean, Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East.

“This is an exceptionally exciting time for Transaero and for our customers,” said Alexander Krinichansky, First Deputy General Director and Executive Director. “We are most pleased to be able to deploy such innovative services for the enjoyment of our customers. Row 44′s services are a great complement to the superior-quality experience for which Transaero is well known.”

“We are honored that Transaero has selected Row 44 to deliver its customers a uniquely innovative in-flight broadband entertainment experience,” said Travis Christ, Row 44′s Chief Marketing & Sales Officer. “Row 44 always seeks to work with the most innovative airlines, and Transaero continues to demonstrate its leadership in innovation. We are pleased to support Transaero in creating an unparalleled broadband entertainment experience to its customers wherever they fly.”

This was a pretty good year for Thales if AIX is any barometer of the economic weather for the French giant (2011 – 13.2 B Euros). The California-based, IFE arm of the the company has hit what looks to be a home run. For Thales CEO Alan Pelligrini, it all appears to be coming together to plan. For starters, Thales just secured their first B787 line fit customer (unnamed) for AVANT to be delivered in the 2014 time-frame on an Airbus A350 XWB aircraft. The Crystal Cabin winning product is Android friendly and a new App Portal has just been commissioned to support it. (Interestingly, due to overwhelming demand beta registration for the Thales Android App Portal is now closed. Watch for the launch soon.) AVANT is now in it’s fifth generation and the jumbo passenger touch screens/web cam will be sporting gesture control in the next generation. Yes, we see a live face-time app in your flying future. The launch customer for AVANT is QATAR Airways. We predict, AVANT will be Thales biggest seller yet.

Number two in the good news department is the show announcement of a joint venture with China Electronics Technology Avionics (CETCA) to provision IFE on China’s COMAC C919. With some 4000 single-aisle planes forecast in China’s future, Thales is in a great position to capture a lion’s share of that business.

The C919 is a 156 to 190 seat jetliner competing with the likes of the A320neo and B737 MAX. Thales will be involved in integration and future sales to other Chinese customers. CETCA’s General Manager, Zeng Li was on hand at AIX to sign the agreement and it was obvious that he felt Thales had their foot in the China door. Time will tell.

On completely different matters, we submit the following two topics:

INFOGRAPHICS
Remember our recent comments on the use of infographics at OnAir? It appears that others have the same idea and we stand by our recommendation for their use in this communication heavy industry. Getting your point across quickly is the name of the game and the trucking folks seem to think accordingly. One good read and I know all I ever wanted to know about trucking. Can you say the same about your communication tools and products?

CONNECTIVITY
Here is a short read on an outsiders view of inflight telephony with some interesting statistics… and great reader comments.

- Achieved new quarterly record sales of $65.1 million

East Aurora, NY | May 1, 2012/Business Wire/– Diluted earnings per share of $0.46, up 12.2% from prior year period

–2012 revenue guidance increased to $250 million to $265 million

Astronics Corporation ATRO -0.94% , a leader in advanced, high-performance lighting, electrical power, avionics databus products and automated test systems for the global aerospace and defense industries, today reported financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2012.

Three Months Ended
—————————————–
Mar 31, Apr 2, %
2012 2011 Change
——— ——— ——
Sales $ 65,138 $ 55,128 18.2 %
Gross Profit $ 18,120 $ 14,506 24.9 %
Gross margin 27.8 % 26.3 %
SG&A $ 8,855 $ 6,345 39.6 %
SG&A percent to sales 13.6 % 11.5 %
Income from Operations $ 9,265 $ 8,161 13.5 %
Operating margin % 14.2 % 14.8 %
Net Income $ 6,095 $ 5,209 17.0 %
Net Income % 9.4 % 9.4 %

Peter J. Gundermann, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “The first quarter was a strong start to fiscal 2012. We set a quarterly sales record for the sixth consecutive quarter, and profitability remained solid. We had bookings during the quarter of $60.8 million, which is confirmation that demand for our products remains high.”

Consolidated Review

Sales in the first quarter of 2012 were $65.1 million, up $10.0 million, or 18.2%, from the prior year first quarter sales of $55.1 million. Aerospace sales, which represented approximately 95% of total first quarter sales, increased 23.5% over the prior year period to $62.0 million. Test Systems sales decreased to $3.1 million for the first quarter 2012 compared with last year’s first quarter of $4.9 million.

Net income in the first quarter of 2012 was $6.1 million, or $0.46 per diluted share, compared with net income of $5.2 million, or $0.41 per diluted share, in the same period of last year. Earnings per share for the first quarter of 2011 have been restated to reflect the impact of the one-for-ten Class B stock distribution to shareholders of record on August 16, 2011.

Consolidated operating margin in the 2012 first quarter was 14.2% compared with 14.8% in the prior year period. Leverage from increased aerospace sales was partially offset by increased engineering and development (“E&D”) costs and increased selling, general and administrative (“SG&A”) costs. E&D costs were $10.0 million in the 2012 first quarter compared with $8.3 million in last year’s first quarter and are included in cost of products sold.

SG&A increased $2.5 million compared with the prior year, primarily as a result of $1.2 million in additional SG&A costs associated with the November 2011 acquisition of Ballard Technology as well as increased compensation and legal costs.

Aerospace Segment Review (refer to sales by market and segment data in accompanying tables)

Sales to the commercial transport market increased primarily on higher demand for cabin electronics products, as well as increased sales of aircraft lighting, airframe power and the addition of Ballard Technology’s (“Ballard”) avionics databus products. Military sales were down primarily as a result of lower sales of aircraft lighting products partially offset by the addition of Ballard’s avionics databus military sales. Sales to the business jet market were flat when compared with last year’s first quarter. Increased aircraft lighting and avionics databus sales were offset by decreased sales of airframe power products to the business jet market. The increase in first quarter FAA airport sales reflects the timing of projects as this tends to be a nonlinear flow product line.

Aerospace operating profit for the first quarter of 2012 was $11.9 million, or 19.2% of sales, compared with $9.3 million, or 18.6% of sales, in the same period last year. The increase in the 2012 first quarter margin reflects leverage gained from increased sales volume partially offset by higher E&D and increased SG&A expenses. The SG&A increase was due to the addition of Ballard’s SG&A as well as higher legal and compensation expenses.

Bookings for the Aerospace segment during the first quarter were $58.6 million, up 20.3% from $48.7 million in the first quarter of 2011, and up 8.5% from bookings of $54.0 million in the trailing fourth quarter of 2011. Backlog at the end of the first quarter was $94.5 million.

Test Systems Segment Review (refer to sales by market and segment data in accompanying tables)

Sales in the 2012 first quarter decreased to $3.1 million when compared with $4.9 million for the same period in 2011.

Test Systems operating loss for the first quarter of 2012 was $1.1 million compared with break even in the same period last year.

Test Systems bookings in the first quarter of $2.3 million were down when compared with $5.8 million in the first quarter of 2011, and down from the trailing 2012 fourth quarter, which had bookings of $2.5 million. Backlog was $7.5 million at the end of the first quarter.

Balance Sheet

Cash at the end of the 2012 first quarter declined by $2.7 million to $8.2 million compared with December 31, 2011, primarily as a result of the early extinguishment in January, 2012 of a $5.0 million, 6% subordinated note and increased investment in net working capital assets.

Capital expenditures during the first quarter of 2012 were $1.7 million compared with $0.8 million in 2011.

The Company expects capital spending in 2012 to be approximately $18 million to $20 million which includes approximately $12 million to $14 million to complete the Kirkland, Washington facility acquired last year for the Astronics AES operation.

Outlook

On March 31, 2012, backlog was $102.0 million, down from backlog of $106.3 million at the end of the trailing fourth quarter of 2011 and improved over backlog of $99.1 million at the end of the first quarter of 2011. Approximately $84.7 million of this backlog is expected to ship by the end of 2012 and $89.4 million is expected to ship over the next four quarters.

Mr. Gundermann concluded, “Based on feedback from customers and our existing backlog, we are raising our revenue expectations for the year to $250 to $265 million. We believe we have the plans in place to make 2012 a very good year.”

Astronics anticipates that approximately $240 million to $253 million of forecasted revenue will be from its Aerospace segment, while approximately $10 million to $12 million of the forecasted revenue will be from its Test Systems segment.

E&D spending for 2012 is expected to be in the range of $36 million to $40 million.

First Quarter 2011 Webcast and Conference Call

The Company will host a teleconference at 11:00 AM ET on Tuesday, May 1, 2012. During the teleconference, Peter J. Gundermann, President and CEO, and David C. Burney, Executive Vice President and CFO, will review the financial and operating results for the period and discuss Astronics’ corporate strategy and outlook. A question-and-answer session will follow.

The Astronics conference call can be accessed by calling (201) 689-8562. The listen-only audio webcast can be monitored at www.astronics.com . To listen to the archived call, dial (858) 384-5517 and enter conference ID number 392763. The telephonic replay will be available from 2:00 p.m. on the day of the call through Tuesday, May 8, 2012. A transcript will also be posted to the Company’s Web site, once available.

ABOUT ASTRONICS CORPORATION

Astronics Corporation is a leader in advanced, high-performance lighting, electrical power, avionics databus products and automated test systems for the global aerospace and defense industries. Astronics’ strategy is to develop and maintain positions of technical leadership in its chosen aerospace and defense markets, to leverage those positions to grow the amount of content and volume of product it sells to those markets and to selectively acquire businesses with similar technical capabilities that could benefit from our leadership position and strategic direction. Astronics Corporation, and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Astronics Advanced Electronic Systems Corp., Ballard Technology, Inc., DME Corporation and Luminescent Systems Inc., have a reputation for high-quality designs, exceptional responsiveness, strong brand recognition and best-in-class manufacturing practices. The Company routinely posts news and other important information on its Web site at www.astronics.com .

For more information on Astronics and its products, visit its Web site at www.astronics.com .

Safe Harbor Statement

This news release contains forward-looking statements as defined by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. One can identify these forward-looking statements by the use of the words “expect,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “estimate” or other similar expressions. Because such statements apply to future events, they are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by the statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include the state of the aerospace and defense industries, the market acceptance of newly developed products, internal production capabilities, the timing of orders received, the status of customer certification processes, the demand for and market acceptance of new or existing aircraft which contain the Company’s products, customer preferences, and other factors which are described in filings by Astronics with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking information in this news release whether to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events or changes in future operating results, financial conditions or prospects, or otherwise.

ASTRONICS CORPORATION
CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT DATA
———————————————————————————–
(Unaudited, $ in thousands except per share data)
Three Months Ended
3/31/2012 4/2/2011
————— —————
Sales $ 65,138 $ 55,128
Cost of products sold 47,018 40,622
—— ——
Gross profit 18,120 14,506
Gross margin 27.8 % 26.3 %
Selling, general and administrative 8,855 6,345
SG&A % of Sales 13.6 % 11.5 %
—— — —— —
Income from operations 9,265 8,161
Operating margin 14.2 % 14.8 %
Interest expense, net 263 537
—— ——
Income before tax 9,002 7,624
Income tax expense 2,907 2,415
—— ——
Net Income $ 6,095 $ 5,209
=== ====== === ======
Net income % of Sales 9.4 % 9.4 %
*Basic earnings per share: $ 0.49 $ 0.43
*Diluted earnings per share: $ 0.46 $ 0.41
*Weighted average diluted shares outstanding (in thousands) 13,114 12,791
Capital Expenditures $ 1,665 $ 754
Depreciation and Amortization $ 1,447 $ 1,190

*All share quantities and per share data reported for 2011 has been restated to reflect the impact of the one-for-ten Class B stock distribution to shareholders of record on August 16, 2011.

ASTRONICS CORPORATION
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET DATA
———————————————————————-
(in thousands)
3/31/2012 12/31/2011
——— ———-
(Unaudited)
ASSETS:
——————————————–
Cash and cash equivalents $ 8,235 $ 10,919
Accounts receivable 39,894 35,669
Inventories 42,290 40,094
Other current assets 5,418 5,628
Property, plant and equipment, net 41,757 41,122
Deferred taxes long-term 8,579 7,039
Other long-term assets 3,143 3,249
Intangible assets, net 13,650 14,000
Goodwill 17,233 17,185
——— ———-
Total Assets $ 180,199 $ 174,905
===== ========= == ==========
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY:
——————————————–
Current maturities of long term debt $ 5,288 $ 5,290
Accounts payable and accrued expenses 30,673 28,187
Long-term debt 21,937 27,973
Other liabilities 16,376 10,592
Shareholders’ equity 105,925 102,863
——— ———-
Total Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity $ 180,199 $ 174,905
===== ========= == ==========

ASTRONICS CORPORATION
SEGMENT DATA
(Unaudited, $ in thousands)
————————————————–
Three Months Ended
——————————-
3/31/2012 4/2/2011
————— ————-
Sales
Aerospace $ 62,001 $ 50,199
Test Systems 3,137 4,929
—— ——
Total Sales 65,138 55,128
—— ——
Operating Profit and Margins
Aerospace 11,878 9,319
19.2 % 18.6 %
Test Systems (1,075) 17
(34.3)% 0.3 %
—— — —— –
Total Operating Profit 10,803 9,336
16.6 % 16.9 %
Interest Expense 263 537
Corporate Expenses and Other 1,538 1,175
—— ——
Income Before Taxes $ 9,002 $ 7,624
=== ====== == ======

ASTRONICS CORPORATION
SALES BY MARKET
——————————————————
(Unaudited, $ in thousands)
Three Months Ended 2012
3/31/2012 4/2/2011 % change YTD %
——— ——– ——– ———-
Aerospace Segment
Commercial Transport $ 44,108 $ 32,926 34.0 % 67.7 %
Military 8,918 9,259 -3.7 % 13.7 %
Business Jet 6,654 6,637 0.3 % 10.2 %
FAA/Airport 2,321 1,377 68.6 % 3.6 %
——— ——– ——– – ———
Aerospace Total 62,001 50,199 23.5 % 95.2 %
Test Systems Segment
Military 3,137 4,929 -36.4 % 4.8 %
——— ——– ——– – ———
Total $ 65,138 $ 55,128 18.2 % 100.0 %
= ========= = ======== ======== = =========

ASTRONICS CORPORATION
SALES BY PRODUCT
——————————————————–
(Unaudited, $ in thousands)
Three Months Ended 2012
3/31/2012 4/2/2011 % change YTD %
——— ——– ——– ———
Aerospace Segment
Cabin Electronics $ 35,039 $ 26,075 34.4 % 53.8 %
Aircraft Lighting 16,987 18,171 -6.5 % 26.1 %
Airframe Power 4,529 4,576 -1.0 % 7.0 %
Airfield Lighting 2,321 1,377 68.6 % 3.5 %
Avionics Databus 3,125 – – % 4.8 %
——— ——– ——– – —– –
Aerospace Total 62,001 50,199 23.5 % 95.2 %
Test Systems Segment 3,137 4,929 -36.4 % 4.8 %
——— ——– ——– – —– –
Total $ 65,138 $ 55,128 18.2 % 100.0 %
= ========= = ======== ======== = ===== ==

ASTRONICS CORPORATION
ORDER AND BACKLOG TREND
——————————————————————-
(Unaudited, $ in thousands)
Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Trailing
2011 2011 2011 2012 Twelve
Months
7/2/2011 10/1/2011 12/31/2011 3/31/2012 3/31/2012
——– ——— ———- ——— ———
Sales
Aerospace $ 51,942 $ 53,509 $ 58,224 $ 62,001 $ 225,676
Test Systems 3,533 2,895 2,932 3,137 12,497
——– ——— ———- ——— ———
Total Sales $ 55,475 $ 56,404 $ 61,156 $ 65,138 $ 238,173
– ——– – ——— – ———- – ——— – ———
Bookings
Aerospace $ 55,029 $ 61,718 $ 54,048 $ 58,567 $ 229,362
Test Systems 3,459 2,761 2,506 2,272 10,998
——– ——— ———- ——— ———
Total Bookings $ 58,488 $ 64,479 $ 56,554 $ 60,839 $ 240,360
– ——– – ——— – ———- – ——— – ———
Backlog
Aerospace $ 93,143 $ 101,352 $ 97,903 $ 94,468 N/A
Test Systems 8,969 8,835 8,409 7,544 N/A
——– ——— ———- ——— ———
Total Backlog $ 102,112 $ 110,187 $ 106,312 $ 102,012 N/A
– ——– – ——— – ———- – ——— ———
Book:Bill Ratio
Aerospace 1.06 1.15 0.93 0.94 1.02
Test Systems 0.98 0.95 0.85 0.72 0.88
——– ——— ———- ——— ———
Total Book:Bill 1.05 1.14 0.92 0.93 1.01
——– ——— ———- ——— ———

- Agreement will provide Airlines and Their Passengers with the World’s Best Gaming Brands

Montreal, Canada | May 1, 2012– DTI Software and Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) announced today plans to provide airlines with several of the world’s most popular games for play on traditional seat back entertainment and Android-based devices. In addition to already flying PopCap games such as Bejeweled® 2 and Zuma®, as well as Hasbro games YAHTZEE™ and BATTLESHIP and EA Pogo games Poppit!™ and Phlinx, passengers can look forward to enjoying many more EA games in-flight, including Need for Speed™ SHIFT, Madden NFL 12, MONOPOLY, SCRABBLE as well as The Sims™ 3 and SimCity™ Deluxe . The companies plan to add additional games throughout the year.

The partnership with EA is part of a broader strategy by DTI Software, the world’s leading in-flight games provider, to make high quality gaming brands accessible to the airline industry and their passengers. The company’s internal findings suggest that the in-flight entertainment industry could mimic current ground-based entertainment trends where games have overtaken movie and TV viewing in some markets.

“As our expertise continues to expand, we remain very much in-tune with the passenger experience and the content needs of today’s airlines,” explained Lisa Linnenkohl, Vice President Licensing & Business Development at DTI Software. “Providing high-quality and popular licensed games through partners such as EA, allows in-flight entertainment to remain relevant and attractive to passengers around the world.”

“EA’s mission is to provide people with the best games anywhere they are, on whatever device they have which is what makes this such a natural partnership,” said Glenn Roland, Vice President of New Platforms and OEM at EA. “DTI Software’s presence on airlines around the world is a powerful distribution channel for us and helps us entertain that many more people with our popular, fun-filled games.”

Munich, Germany | April 30, 2012– The Advanced Inflight Alliance Group (AIA), the in-flight content expert behind IFE market leaders Inflight Productions and DTI Software, has appointed Patrick Joly as Vice-President Group Strategy Implementation.

After several months as Managing Director of Spafax Interactive, Patrick will be in charge of implementing business strategies across the AIA Group entities, with a particular emphasis on aligning the strategic goals of Inflight Productions and DTI Software.

Patrick previously spent twelve years at DTI Software as Director of Program Management and Vice-President of Customer Care where he implemented the company’s Customer Relations Program and helped acquire a number of DTI’s airline customers.

Louis Bélanger-Martin, CEO of AIA, commented: “We are delighted that Patrick has accepted to return to the helm of AIA. His extensive knowledge of airlines’ in-flight entertainment needs and strategic IFE insight will be a tremendous asset to our Group.”

London, UK | April 26, 2012– Inflight Productions (IFP), the market-leading inflight service provider specialised in engaging passengers through tailored content, today launched the first-ever application providing passengers with real-time complete listings of all the programming on-board KLM’s intercontinental fleet.

The KLM Movies & More app, which is available to download for free on iTunes, is the first of its kind allowing travellers to plan their long-haul flight schedule ahead of time by accessing listings of KLM’s inflight movies, TV, audio and children’s entertainment prior to boarding. It also provides synopses and film trailer previews to enhance and extend the travel experience.

The app is one of several ground-breaking inflight entertainment projects which London-based Content Service Provider IFP is developing to answer growing demands from airlines to adapt ground-based content solutions for inflight use.

“The development of this unique app, in partnership with our long-standing partner KLM, is another example of the deep knowledge and understanding we have of airlines’ inflight entertainment expectations and the needs of their passengers,” explained Roberts Hunter, CEO of IFP. “We distinguish our services through pioneering solutions which offer ever-engaging and relevant content to flight passengers, closing the gap between ground and air technologies and reshaping the inflight entertainment industry as we know it.”

“With the KLM Movies & More app, we’re taking inflight entertainment to the next level, expanding the reach of our broad IFE offer by making listings accessible to our passengers’ mobile devices. This introduction brings the KLM app suite up to five applications, together increasing brand awareness and above all brand affinity” commented Audrey Zielinski, Manager of Inflight Entertainment at KLM.

KLM Movies & More is available to download from the iTunes app store and through KLM’s website, and is compatible with Apple iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad devices.

(Image Above: That’s Maureen Gersch in the photo next to the Lumexis WiPAX display at AIX)

As you might imagine, Wi-Fi was a big topic this AIX and companies like Lumexis, Thales, and Panasonic were showing their hardware. Lumexis, the “fiber to the display” folks, told IFExpress that the driver for Wi-Fi was the customer airlines. According to an outfit called IMS Research, there are only 80 aircraft today that have access to streaming entertainment (however, we found out that there a lot more commercial jets currently installed with Wi-Fi) but they predict some 9000 by 2021, that goal seems reasonable. For example, we note that go-go currently has 1500 planes aloft with Wi-Fi. This year alone, go-go has installed 140 planes to date. Internet is big and will be getting bigger and as the technology of the Smartphone grows, streaming entertainment may be just the ticket for smaller planes. For sure, the Internet is in big demand by passengers, but watching a movie on anything less than an iPad sized device is a task.

Back to Lumexis – we asked Rich Salter, CTO for Lumexis about their goals for a Wi-Fi system. Noting that their IFE offering is pretty unlimited, he said that they chose to make their system “… less complex, easy to install, and easy to use.” In the included picture of the Lumexis WiPAX System, the WSU (Wireless Server Unit) will be capable of streaming to all PEDs simultaneously through the WAPs (Wireless Access Points) with 802.11 a/b/g/n delivery. A single aisle plane will require approximately three WAPS so that’s approximately one WAP for each 50 – 60 passengers. We understand they will outfit the WAPs with directional antennas inside the plane. Lumexis plans to use WAPs from any qualified supplier, rather than selecting a single vendor, which is probably why they aren’t shown in the display. Lumexis is producing a Firewall Router Unit (FRU) that sits between the server and the WAPs and interfaces to all qualified WAPs. The FRU also handles the fiber optic to copper Ethernet conversion (see the attached WiPAX Block Diagram).

We asked about challenges with larger airplanes, as scalability will certainly be important for vendors and airlines alike. They noted that larger wide-body aircraft could require 6-8 WAPs for good wireless coverage. By the way, the WiPAX server relies on Solid State Drives (500 GB or 1 TB SSDs), and those SSDs will continue to increase in capacity in the same form factor as the market for laptops drives it upward.

And you might ask, what can a passenger do with WiPAX? Rich Salter says, “WiPAX can deliver almost everything that FTTS can (except first run movies) – albeit in a slower, lower resolution fashion – if you are willing to watch it on your own small screen.” He states that this includes movies, TV series, games, eReader content (eNewspapers, eMagazines, and eBooks), food and beverage ordering, duty-free shopping, moving map (to be expected, with ex-Airshow founder Salter involved!), news headlines, weather info, passenger surveys, and more. It’s important to note that early-window video content is simply not available to be streamed wirelessly to passenger devices (due to studios’ security concerns) – This tells us that there is still no substitute for installed video, especially on long haul flights! How about the installations in coach and premium classes? We see an installation mixed bag in most cases. For long haul applications we anticipate embedded inseat video for economy, more inseat video on bigger screens in business class and with some streaming video in business class… and later, Internet (data) for both. For short haul, we expect inseat video for premium classes, and WiFi for coach class – most likely a passenger paid-for service in economy.

The Lumexis Wi-Fi system can be an add-on to their flagship FTTS as well as a stand alone product and, as in the past, Lumexis is the content aggregator. The abilty to be a stand alone system is nice, and note that it interfaces with existing aircraft keyline inputs like announcements and flight safety demo’s. (Editor’s Note: If you have thought of some more clever uses for a wireless system during this take-off and landing dead zone, we bet Lumexis would like to hear from you!)

On an unrelated note: If you haven’t gotten your fill of the last flight of Discovery aboard a B747, you will like this link.