Canadian North Airlines has become the first customer for Global Eagle’s new portable wireless in-flight entertainment solution, Airconnect Go.
“Throughout Canadian North’s history, we have continually grown and innovated for the benefit of our scheduled service and charter customers, always with warm hospitality and an unyielding commitment to safety,” said Steve Hankirk, president of Canadian North. “The launch of top-notch in-flight entertainment options will further enhance our onboard experience. We’re thrilled to be working with Global Eagle to introduce this exciting new in-flight amenity.”
The first deployments for Calgary-based Canadian North will be during December 2018 with four Boeing 737 aircraft. Canadian North operates daily scheduled flights to, from and across Canada’s vast Arctic region.
“Every passenger expects entertainment and Airconnect Go is a high-quality portable system that takes advantage of Global Eagle’s industry-leading passenger entertainment platform,” said Per Norén, executive VP and chief commercial officer of Global Eagle. “We thank Canadian North for being the launch customer and we expect a significant number of airlines to follow.”
Airconnect Go can fit into the overhead bin of most commercial aircraft. A single Airconnect Go system, which is not much bigger than a loaf of bread, can stream concurrently to over 50 users. Passenger analytics can be tracked using Global Eagle’s Airview reporting system.
The system is a low-cost and fast option for airlines. There is no hardware to install and the system complies with avionics standards without the need for additional aircraft certification or Supplemental Type Certificates (STCs).
Passengers can use their own devices to stream content. Airconnect Go integrates Airtime’s Digital Rights Management capabilities, enabling passengers to play back content via their web browser without an additional application being required for Apple iOS or Google Android devices and laptops.
