Matt Thurber, editor-in-chief at AIN Media Group, has been flying since 1975 and writing about aviation since 1978 and now has the best job in the world, running editorial operations for Aviation International News, Business Jet Traveler, and FutureFlight.aero. In addition to working as an A&amp;P mechanic on everything from Piper Cubs to turboprops, Matt taught flying at his father’s flight school in Plymouth, Mass., in the early 1980s, flew for an aircraft owner/pilot, and for two summer seasons hunted swordfish near the George’s Banks off the East Coast from a Piper Super Cub. An ATP certificated fixed-wing pilot and CFII and commercial helicopter pilot, Matt is type-rated in the Citation 500 and Gulfstream V/550. Based in the Pacific Northwest, Matt and his team cover the entire aviation scene including business aircraft, helicopters, avionics, safety, manufacturing, charter, fractionals, technology, air transport, advanced air mobility, defense, and other subjects of interest to AIN, BJT, and FutureFlight readers.

Editor-in-Chief

Matt Thurber

Nokia's new air-to-ground (ATG) connectivity network will begin operation in Europe later this year, and the company is targeting airlines and business aviation operators, it announced Septermber 18. The initial network will cover 30 countries in the region and offer LTE-equivalent speed, with throughput capability of 75 Mbps. This is as fast or faster than existing satellite high-speed connectivity systems and faster than U.S. ATG systems such as Gogo and the upcoming SmartSky network.

 


Thorsten Robrecht, Nokia’s vice president of advanced mobile networks solutions, claims that his company’s ATG network will be the “world’s first and only home-like Internet experience on board.” However, Inmarsat’s now-operational GX broadband satcom can deliver around 50 Mbps given a large enough antenna on the aircraft; in most business jet applications, antenna size limits speeds to closer to 15 Mbps. Gogo’s new Avance L5 ATG network in the U.S. provides high enough speeds for video streaming, and the company’s next ATG offering will deliver speeds of 100 Mbps. Like Avance, Nokia’s ATG system will require dual antennas on the aircraft. Thales is manufacturing the airborne equipment for the Nokia system, which will require 300 base stations to cover all of Europe.

 


Nokia is also pitching the benefits of ATG for operational uses such in-flight planning changes and electronic flight bag updates and cabin service functions. One version of the ATG system will be combined with satcom to provide “hybrid” airborne connectivity that will also work over oceans and outside of Europe, something that Gogo also offers for airlines and more recently for business aircraft.

 


“Europe is just a starting point,” said Robrecht. “We’re seeing demand all over the world. In our opinion, there is a huge opportunity beyond Europe.”

News and developments about everything that goes into the cabin of an aircraft, from floor coverings to headliners, with a special emphasis on in-flight entertainment, communications and other electronics for passengers. If it is in the cabin of an aircraft, it’s covered here.

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News and issues relating to the aerospace industry that are related to the science, engineering and business of flight in space involving civil, industrial and military applications, and similar topics related to flight in the atmosphere of the Earth that are not covered more directly by other AINonline subject channels. In other words, both astronautical and aeronautical subjects, except for those aeronautical topics that are specifically covered elsewhere on this website.

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