A multi-engine, instrument rated pilot, James Wynbrandt has been an AIN and Business Jet Traveler contributor since 2003. His in-depth reporting and insightful features have won more than a dozen editorial honors, including two National Business Aviation Association Gold Wing Awards (2019; 2021), and his articles have also appeared in the New York Times, Barron’s, Fortune, Forbes, and Smithsonian Air &amp; Space. He has flown his Mooney M20K 252 on assignments throughout North and Central America and the Caribbean. Wynbrandt is also the author of Flying High (Wiley &amp; Sons), a biography of Jet Blue founder David Neeleman, as well as histories, references works, and books on a variety of other topics from major publishers. He lives in New York City.

Contributor - Business Aviation

James Wynbrandt

Nothing in the cabin gets more attention from business jet buyers and owners today than in-flight entertainment (IFE) and cabin management systems (CMS), and here at NBAA 2017 the full spectrum of this essential equipment and accessories is on display, alongside technical experts who can explain the fast-changing technology.

 


Seeing synergies in their respective cabin installation and technologies expertise, C&amp;L Aviation and DPI Labs (Booth C10618) have partnered to offer aftermarket CMS for Bombardier Globals and Challengers, Gulfstreams, Hawkers and other aircraft, and they’re highlighting their new offering here. C&amp;L specializes in interior and exterior refurbishment and avionics upgrades, while DPI manufactures switches and switch panels, lighting, air distribution and entertainment systems in addition to CMS. With the combined expertise the teams possess, consultations are a key part of the offering, ensuring the partners provide a CMS perfectly suited to customers’ onboard needs. “That’s why it’s important to us to ask the right questions,” said Chris Kilgour, CEO of C&amp;L Aviation.

 


DPI Labs was the first CMS manufacturer certified through the Boeing Aircraft D1-9000 Quality Workmanship Standard, and the company also originated the membrane type switches specifically engineered for VIP private aircraft, and developed the SmartLink closed loop control and interface system.

 


Ovation Select from Honeywell (Booth N5100) is a scalable, flexible system that handles all cabin control and entertainment functions. As an entertainment medium, Ovation Select “turns the ordinary business jet cabin into a state-of-the-art theater in the sky,” according to Honeywell. Passengers can view high-resolution content on LCDs, listen to digital satellite radio and watch flight progress on the system’s JetMap HD moving map. Ovation Select delivers crystal-clear digital surround sound and full HD widescreen displays. The system accommodates anything from USB drives and laptops to HD gaming systems, and can share content throughout the cabin.

 


As a cabin management tool, Ovation Select controls communications, lighting, temperature, galley functions and even window shades. Of course it also supports&nbsp;email, Internet access, video conferencing and other office-in-the-sky applications. Passengers can operate the system via touchscreen personal control units, discrete switches, and hand-held remote applications for smart devices. Ovation Select incorporates an advanced onboard diagnostics tool that continuously monitors the entire system, end-to-end, and is designed to allow easy and rapid integration of future technology innovations.

 


Alto Aviation’s cabin audio and entertainment systems (Booth N3507) are standard equipment on new business jets from Gulfstream, Dassault Falcon, Embraer and Cessna’s Citation line, and are also popular in aftermarket cabin refurbishments and upgrades. Alto’s Cadence Switch System (CSS) was incorporated in the recent refurbishments of two Challenger 850s performed by Flying Colours (Booth N5908) for a U.S. East Coast-based corporate fleet operator. The identically configured aircraft have 25 switch panels to control all galley, cabin and lavatory functions. Essentially drop-in replacements, the CSS is designed in the same form factor as obsolete legacy switch panels found in many business aircraft, reducing retrofit time and cost. Alto audio and entertainment systems are standard on the Gulfstream G650/650ER, G500/600, G450/550 Elite Series, G280; Falcon 7X, 900, 2000; Embraer Lineage, Legacy 650, 600, 500, 450; and Cessna Citation X, Sovereign and Latitude.

 


Lufthansa Technik’s Nice HD is a modular, highly configurable Ethernet (IP) based CMS and IFE system flying on 300 business jets and executive airliners. In fact, Lufthansa Technik (LHT; Booth C10125) claims it’s the only such cabin system installed on aircraft “as large as a 747 and as small as a Challenger 300.” Introduced in 2003, Nice HD provides an easy and simple way to control cabin functions, enjoy a wide selection of entertainment options, and access the Internet. All graphical user interfaces are highly intuitive, and the open architecture allows LHT to offer a large number of equipment options or packages. The standard IP protocol network supports Live TV, audio video on demand and moving map systems, and allows system changes and upgrades without rewiring.

 


LHT has also partnered with Satcom Direct (Booth C11420; SD09) on a new entertainment service offering DRM-secured and licensed movies and TV shows on Nice HD-equipped aircraft. The service is available for all IFE/CMS platforms via LHT’s nicemedia Smartbox, powered by SD.

 


Melbourne, Fla.-based Satcom Direct expanded beyond its satcom service plan provider’s roots with the 2013 launch of the Satcom Direct Router (SDR), which handles both CMS and IFE functions. SDR now incorporates next-generation acceleration and compression technologies, enabling the unit to increase data speed by inspecting traffic and selecting which portions are compressible. SDR offers a menu of services in addition to providing communication, entertainment, connectivity and cabin controls. Satcom Direct has complemented SDR with WiFi Hub, which can serve as an SDR hub on an executive airliner, or as a stand-alone, less expensive router with more limited features.

 


Venue from Rockwell Collins (Booth N4000) is standard equipment on the Bombardier Global and an in-demand cabin retrofit upgrade. Currently installed on 850 business aircraft, Venue incorporates a fiber-optic backbone with the bandwidth and system architecture to accommodate current and future cabin configuration needs. Its connectivity capabilities provide seamless, swift and reliable data flow to and from the aircraft via services available through subsidiary ArincDirect, including Inmarsat’s SwiftBroadband and high-speed Jet ConneX, Iridium, and ViaSat mobile broadband.

 


Rockwell Collins collaborates with customers to configure each installation for the personalized needs of each. Meanwhile, Rockwell Collins’s new Stage subscription content service delivers the latest movies, TV shows, music and magazines to mobile devices and laptops, with content refreshed monthly from a web-based menu.

 


Venue also supports Airshow moving maps, and the Tailwind series of airborne satellite TV systems, available above the contiguous United States and multiple regions worldwide, including Europe and the Middle East.

 


Mecaer Aviation Group (Booth N2121) has brought business jet cabin-style CMS and IFE to the helicopter world with its In-flight Entertainment and Enhanced Lounge (I-Feel) system. The smart device-controlled I-Feel provides wireless Wi-Fi connectivity, moving maps, mood and reading light controls, audio/video functions, and electro-chromic window shading control to the rotor cabin, in addition to noise-reducing Speech Interference Level Enhanced Noise System (Silens) technology. If your helicopter flights are more than short hops, a cabinet with retractable monitor is optional.

 


Here in Las Vegas, the Italian company is introducing the I-Feel Generation Three system, designed for airplanes, with a fully operational system in a cabin mockup on display. Mecaer provides interiors incorporating I-Feel for the Leonardo AW139 and AW169, and will provide the optional interior for the Bell 505 Jet Ranger X, and the standard and optional Grandeur cabins for the Bell 525 Relentless.

 


FDS Avionics (Booth N6108), manufacturer of the Smart Cabin CMS and "do" suite of IFE offerings, is introducing two new moving maps developed for the "do" Experience, available in both 2D and 3D.

 


The FDS Smart Cabin provides controls for lights, shades, audio-visual sources and other cabin systems, and allows controls to be customized, even to fit specific moods, according to the Alpharetta, Ga. company. The wireless "do" Capsule forms the system’s core, enabling control of CMS and IFE functions via iOS, Android and Windows personal smart devices. The "do" Capsule itself can stream HD video and allow sharing of office productivity files.

 


The robust and easy to install Controller Area Network Bus (CAN Bus 2.0B) forms the "do" Capsule’s backbone, the architecture providing a reliable network of components without the complexity of running all wires to a central server.

 


Other FDS products include the Edge series of monitors; and "do" 360, a subscription service providing access to movies and other entertainment, including DRM content of the latest Hollywood releases.

 


Though not being shown here, Montreal’s Ingenio Aerospace’s Smart Cabin suite of offerings are electro-mechanical products: Smart Cabin Arm, Smart Cockpit Arm, and Smartphone Holder. These retrofit cabin control products support different formats of tablets, electronic flight bags, smartphones and MP3 players, and are designed to bridge smart device evolution. Its USB-based receptacles accept a variety of plug-in smartphone and tablet arms. The Ingenio SmartPlate holds a smartphone or tablet securely and contains a connector for the device, which can be easily changed if the device manufacturer changes the connector configuration. SmartPlates are available for the Apple 30-pin and Lightning connectors, Android-based Samsung Galaxy Tabs, Google Nexus 7 and 10 tablets and Amazon Kindle Fire.

 


Custom Control Concepts (CCC) of Kent, Washington, specializes in creating highly customized CMS and IFEs for Airbus and Boeing executive airliners, as well as business jets and turboprops and helicopters. CCC’s products cover all facets of onboard entertainment, communication and environmental systems control, and offer customized graphical user interfaces accessible on touchscreens for intuitive systems operation.

 


Innov8 Cabin Solutions of Kirkland, Wash. offers economical cabin upgrades like its CabinFlex Simplicity products for aircraft with out-of-date or obsolete CMS and IFEs. Innov8 recently received PMA approval of their CFlex USB charger, enabling the carry on and use of Innov8’s CFlex Arm and CFlex Holder options for customers’ personal electronic devices. The CFlex USB charger provides multiple independent USB smart charging ports and docking ports for other CabinFlex products.

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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