Flight passengers will soon be able to connect to their families and colleagues on Earth via low-orbit telecommunications satellites.

Speeds will be comparable to those at home, substantially boosting the service currently provided by geostationary satellites.

On 19 March, communications company OneWeb signed an agreement to deliver Wi-Fi on aircraft with SatixFy, a British manufacturer of electronic components.

They will develop in-flight connectivity terminals that will work over OneWeb's constellation of low-Earth orbit satellites, as well as on geostationary satellite networks.

OneWeb currently has 110 satellites in orbit but foresees a constellation of about 650.

The terminals will use electronically steered multi-beam antenna technologies to provide multi-beam capability and operate simultaneously via many different satellites.

The terminals use SatixFy's state-of-the-art application-specific integrated circuit chip set, developed with the support of the UK Space Agency through ESA's programme of Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems (ARTES).

Satixfy has formed a joint venture called JetTalk with Singapore Technology Engineering Ltd to commercialise the terminal for commercial aviation markets.

Elodie Viau, Director of Telecommunications and Integrated Applications at ESA, says: "Space and satellites are becoming increasingly important to the digital economy and there is a need to get data all the time and everywhere - even on board a plane.

"ESA is proud to have supported SatixFy in the design of the chips used for this terminal - enabling the digital transformation of society using telecommunications satellites."

Catherine Mealing-Jones, Director of Growth at the UK Space Agency, says: "The past year has shown that connectivity has never been more important to our daily lives, and it is exciting to see SatixFy and OneWeb working together to provide commercial passenger planes with broadband internet for the first time.

"The new aero terminal will make use of chips developed with UK Space Agency backing, which demonstrates how supporting our most innovative companies leads to results that make a real difference for people all over the world."

Yoel Gat, chief executive of SatixFy, says: "The ability to deploy multi-beam, multi-satellite, multi-orbit in-flight connectivity terminals is key in SatixFy's offerings. Aggregating capacity from multiple satellites will give customers the grade of service they expect to get on flights. This great leap forward is made possible thanks to the continuous support by ESA and the UK Space Agency."

Related Links
OneWeb
Satellite-based Internet technologies

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Clubhouse a sandbox for talking 'influencers'
San Francisco (AFP) March 19, 2021
An internet spin on talk radio, the new social network Clubhouse has become a sandbox for people tinkering with ways to win fans and make money with audio. Clubhouse, still invite-only and accessible just through apps on Apple mobile devices, lets users drop into virtual rooms to join hosted conversations on any of a gamut of topics. Taz Zammit recounted being in a Clubhouse "room" while a beloved DJ made millions of dollars auctioning off musical creations tuned to the hot trend of authenticati ... read more