Press Release

Issued by SD Avionics.

May 19, 2015

TrueNorth Avionics announced today the general availability of the TrueNorth Optelity Cabin Gateway, the company's newest cabin communications platform. Launched in October of 2014, the first quarter of this year saw the first deliveries of the unit, and a Gulfstream GV aircraft STC (supplemental type certificate) project is also underway.

The Cabin Gateway, which is part of the Optelity family of products, gives aircraft owners the ultimate in upgrade flexibility. A single configurable unit allows purchasers to tailor the system to fit their requirements. Features range from simple voice capabilities to full-on office capabilities, including popular telephony applications, 3G mobile communications services, and Wi-Fi.

“Our Optelity family of communications products represents a new way forward for connectivity in the aircraft cabin,” said Mark van Berkel, TrueNorth ceo. “Every time you turn around there's a new mobile device, new social media and applications. We've designed and built our Optelity systems to be compliant with current standards, but more importantly to rapidly come up-to-speed with standards and technology that have yet to be set or developed. The Optelity Cabin Gateway is the first of a number of products that is designed to defy obsolescence. Not only is it upgradeable from basic to high-end features, there is virtually no limit to its upgradability over time.”

The Optelity Cabin Gateway is offered as four configurable packages. The top of the line, Optelity Pro provides all that competitive systems offer, and more, at a cost-effective price. Optelity Wi-Fi, the product line's base model price starts at $24,995 MSRP. All versions of the Optelity Cabin Gateway component can be customized to fit the specific requirements, but Optelity Flex is unique. This version allows operators to pick and pay for the specific configuration they need. The entire family of products is app-based. What this means is that the software in the Cabin Gateway defines the system's functionality. This streamlines upgrades because software updates are easier to implement than physical equipment replacements. The effect of this innovative thinking is that, not only can the system be upgraded to add features, as the business jet requires, the Cabin Gateway is built to accommodate new devices and applications as they emerge over time.

TrueNorth Optelity Cabin Gateway has a small footprint and conforms to the ARINC 600 2MCU form factor. Weighing-in at approximately 7.3 lbs (3.3 kg), the component is lightweight and highly integrated. It offers Wi-Fi (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) and two channels of Iridium voice. The Cabin Gateway has an integrated PBX and an advanced IP-based router. Along with Voice over IP (VoIP) support, it is compatible with smartphones, laptops, tablets and phablets, and integrates with TrueNorth Stylus Wi-Fi, Corded Ethernet and Classic Ethernet handsets. TrueNorth Optelity Cabin Gateway comes in four versions: Optelity Pro, Optelity Talk, Optelity Wi-Fi and Optelity Flex.