Viasat and Deutsche Telekom to boost EAN broadband coverage
AEGEAN is one of the airlines set to benefit from the ground network expansion
Viasat and Deutsche Telekom have announced a ground network expansion for Viasat’s European Aviation Network (EAN) to support inflight broadband service in the Eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. The move is set to meet the growing demand from airline passengers with three new ground stations operating in the region to complement more than 300 ground network antenna sites already set up across Europe, the March 7th press release said. The sites will enhance the capacity of the EAN’s satellite coverage.
“EAN continues to deliver a great in-flight connectivity solution for certain fleets operating in Europe and we’re proud to augment the satellite capacity for passengers travelling to and from Cyprus with AEGEAN. We’ve been thoroughly impressed by AEGEAN’s commitment to enhancing its passenger experience however possible. We know that reliable, high-speed broadband connectivity at 30,000 feet is crucial, and now, passengers travelling on every domestic route offered by AEGEAN can benefit,” said Shameem Hashmi, VP, Aviation Strategy at Viasat.
This increased coverage is expected to benefit passengers flying to and from Cyprus with AEGEAN. The airline launched its inflight connectivity service, powered by EAN, in 2022 to enhance its onboard passenger experience; since early this year, AEGEAN has been offering free Wi-Fi to all passengers.
“The cooperation with EAN is a significant milestone for AEGEAN as it enabled us to further accelerate our product and offer an enhanced and always connected in-flight experience. With this new infrastructure advancement, we can now offer the same seamless in-flight connectivity offered in all our network flights, also for the flights to and from Cyprus, that occasionally have faced some slower speeds. Offering high-speed connectivity to every passenger, on each of our flights, fulfils our promise to all passengers traveling with AEGEAN and I am really pleased that through our partnership with Viasat and Deutsche Telekom, we are able to keep you all connected in the air,” said Dimitris Gerogiannis, Chief Executive Officer at AEGEAN.
More than one million passengers have enjoyed the inflight connectivity service since its launch. The service is being installed on AEGEAN’s A320 and A321s, both on existing aircraft and upcoming deliveries.
“With Viasat, we launched the European Aviation Network with a vision to bring outstanding passenger connectivity to Europe’s aviation industry. It is amazing to see it grow from strength to strength in terms of customers and passenger usage. One of EAN’s key advantages for airline customers is that it’s future-proof as we can adapt and expand our ground network at any time based on actual requirements. We proved this a couple of years ago with the North Sea expansion, and once again now, when EAN’s latest customer AEGEAN had such a need, which we were able to fulfill together with Viasat and Deutsche Telekom’s subsidiary in Greece, Cosmote,” said Rolf Nafziger, Senior Vice President of Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier.
