New Global Broadband Solution Nears Commercial Launch

Gogo Business Aviation, in partnership with Duncan Aviation, has successfully completed the initial installation and test flight of its Gogo Galileo HDX antenna on a Bombardier Challenger 300. This milestone precedes the commercial launch of Gogo’s Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) global broadband solution.

The Gogo Galileo HDX antenna is designed for a wide range of business aircraft, offering average speeds of 57 Mbps and peak speeds up to 60 Mbps. A larger version, the Gogo Galileo FDX antenna, is set for release mid next year. The FDX variation will cater to larger aircraft, with speeds of up to 195 Mbps.

The installation of the Galileo HDX on the Challenger 300 involved mounting the antenna to the fuselage, connecting it to power and data lines, and then linking it to the existing AVANCE L5 line replaceable unit (LRU). This streamlined process is intended to allow more efficient integration with the approximately 4,000 aircraft already equipped with the AVANCE platform.

“Our expert team completed the installation, and then alongside Gogo's engineers, immediately started testing the system on the ground…” commented Mark Winter, Satellite Manager at Duncan Aviation Houston. “It was impressive to say the least, and we know our customers who upgrade to Gogo Galileo will love this step-function improvement in the connectivity experience."

Sergio Aguirre, President and COO of Gogo, confirmed that the Gogo Galileo HDX is on track for their planned fourth-quarter launch. He noted that the Galileo connection will utilize the existing Eutelsat OneWeb enterprise-grade LEO satellite network, which provides a dedicated bandwidth.

Gogo will proceed with additional pre-distribution checks, including electromagnetic interference (EMI) and vibration and buffeting tests.

Currently, Gogo has eight Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) programs committed to covering 5,318 aircraft. 21 additional STC agreements totaling 12,267 aircraft are underway.

The company is now accepting purchase orders and offering a $25,000 rebate to existing Gogo customers upgrading from legacy air-to-ground systems.

FMI: www.gogoair.com, www.duncanaviation.aero