Nationwide 5G System on Track for Q4 2023 Launch

Gogo 5G is about the ambitious business of building the world’s first 5G network exclusively for business aviation. The company’s AVANCE L5 5G architecture promises to afford air-travelers greater connectivity and data transfer rates across more devices than extant systems.

Specifically, Gogo 5G is expected to deliver an average of approximately 25-megabytes-per-second (Mbps), with peak-speeds in the 75-80 Mbps range. To address the increasing demand for data-heavy interactive services the likes of video conferencing, the network has been designed to deliver high throughput with low latency.

The multi-bearer capability and software-centric design of Gogo’s AVANCE platform allows customers to future-proof their inflight connectivity investments, and offers upgrade paths to Gogo’s 5G and global Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite-based networks.

At the 2019 NBAA-BACE, Gogo declared its commitment to building a 5G network embodying bleeding-edge aviation connectivity. At 2022’s NBAA-BACE—in an instance of commendable follow-through—Gogo announced it had completed and deployed the entirety of its 150-site, nationwide 5G network. 

Regrettably, Samsung announced soon thereafter that it had discovered a manufacturing error in the first production run of its 5G chips—a salient component of Gogo’s 5G aspirations. The South Korean tech giant subsequently estimated initial deliveries of the chips would be delayed until mid-2023.

Comes now January 2023 and confirmation that Samsung’s 5G chips have passed a critical design review and are now in fabrication with deliveries expected to commence midyear.

Gogo’s senior vice president of engineering Mike Syverson stated: “The critical design review was an important process and milestone before entering into the manufacturing cycle. Given the challenges that our supplier experienced in 2022, we felt that passing this amount of review would give us the confidence necessary to deliver 5G in 2023.”

In light of the happy news from Samsung, Gogo posits its 5G service will launch commercially in the fourth quarter of 2023.

The first-article Supplemental Type Certification (STC) for the 5G belly-mounted MB13 antennas and the X3 (5G) Line Replaceable Units (LRU) have been completed. Subject STC will be amended once Samsung’s much-anticipated 5G chips become available.

Gogo is working with business aviation original equipment manufacturers and numerous authorized Gogo dealers to develop additional STCs covering north of thirty factory-new and aftermarket aircraft models.

Customers seeking Gogo connectivity in the short-term have the option of installing the AVANCE L5 5G system and operating on Gogo’s 4G network until the X3 LRU becomes available. Upon reaching market, the X3 can be quickly installed, and 5G service enabled with minimal downtime and expense.

Gogo is offering compelling incentives to customers seeking to install 5G provisional kits with the AVANCE L5.

To date, over 2,500 commercial aircraft and 6,600 business aircraft have been equipped with Gogo’s onboard Wi-Fi services. The advent of the company’s 5G network stands to diminish the rigors of air-travel by keeping passengers and aircrews in immediate and reliable contact with their families and colleagues—thereby salting the farthest corners of the great, wide world with the preciously familiar and the means to productivity. 

Gogo plans to expand its 5G network into Canada in 2023.

 FMI: www.business.gogoair.com