EAD Aerospace's SUMS Satcom installation system on board Qatar Airways's 777s |
| Romain Guillot |
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20 SEP 2017 | 398 words
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© Immarsat |
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France's EAD Aerospace has now a great showcase in commercial aviation. Eclipse's Part 21J (design) and Part 21G (production) approved subsidiary has just announced that its Satcom Universal Mounting System (SUMS) solution will be installed on Qatar Airway's entire fleet of Boeing 777-300ERs and -200LRs, in close collaboration with Inmarsat. The first aircraft has just been modified in Qatar Airways's MRO facilities in Doha and several others will follow in the coming weeks.
EAD Aerospace's SUMS hosts Honeywell's JetWave satellite antenna system to be able to connect to Inmarsat's Global Xpress (GX) constellation and so provide broadband connectivity in Ka-Band. The installation system developed by EAD Aerospace comprises the baseplate, the skirt, the harness and the structural reinforcements. The radome itself is provided by Honeywell.
EAD Aerospace indicated that it received an EASA Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) in record time to be able to start installing its SUMS solution on Qatar Airways's Triple Sevens. The company specifies that its ARINC 791 system is particularly easy to install, with very few modifications on the fuselage. The Qatari airline is also installing its radomes during scheduled maintenance checks, without the need for extended ground-time, and with a minimum of man-hours in comparison with typical complex, large antenna installations. Aircraft are then fitted with servers and Wi-Fi access points and their associated wires.
At the start of June, Inmarsat had revealed that Qatar Airways would be the first airline in the Middle East to deploy Inmarsat's new Ka-Band connectivity, with the objective of equipping over 130 aircraft of its fleet. The A350s were already equipped in Line-fit, with the 43 Boeing 777s in its passenger fleet being the only aircraft concerned by this modification for the moment (Qatar Airways is also de to receive 10 brand new 777-300ERs). The activation of GX high-speed connectivity on the first Qatar Airways aircraft is expected before the end of the year.
EAD Aerospace has been working on its SUMS solution since 2014. Le Journal de l'Aviation had learned of the existence of this Satcom installation system which is compatible with Honeywell's JetWave antenna at the 2016 Hamburg Aircraft Interiors Expo.
After receving a Supplemental Type Certificate be able to install its SUMS solution on Airbus single-aisle aircraft (2016) and on the A330 and 777 (2017), EAD Aerospace is now hoping to receive certifications for A340 and 747 very soon.
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Romain Guillot
Chief editor
Cofounder of Journal de l'Aviation and Alertavia
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