Satcom Direct is celebrating the qualification of the Satcom Direct Plane Simple antenna system on the Intelsat FlexExec network. Together, Intelsat's high throughput satellite network combined with the Plane Simple Ku-band tail-mounted antenna system simplifies high-speed data access for more business aviation owners globally through ease of installation, flexible plans and advanced antenna technology.

The verification follows months of diligent testing and optimisation by both companies, confirming that the first network integrated SD Plane Simple terminal, designed exclusively for business aviation, is fully compatible with the world's first dedicated network capacity for business aviation, the Intelsat FlexExec service.

“Until now high-speed capabilities have remained the domain of the large jet market; this qualification opens up the possibilities for more jet sizes to benefit from the advantages of high-speed broadband,” explains Satcom president Chris Moore. “Our operators are going to be delighted with the level of performance, cost effectiveness and convenience of the powerful system. We are excited to introduce this advanced technology as it will better support more inflight productivity, enhance leisure time and enable improved operational management for more customers.”

The singular design of the SD Plane Simple antenna system, built in partnership with Quantenelektronische Systeme, consists of just two line replaceable units, the Satcom Direct modem and tail mount antenna. This minimises invasive installation, reduces maintenance fees and provides an easy transition pathway to upgrade connectivity services. The qualification confirms that together SD and Intelsat have successfully enabled more seamless communication options, while enabling high-speed data connectivity through flexible, managed services, from a single resource, SD. Customers from the private, corporate, government and military sectors will all have access to the benefits of the Intelsat FlexExec network and the SD Plane Simple hardware.

“SD and Intelsat are advancing the in-flight experience for business aviation with a future-proof, hassle-free, end-to-end managed solution. Our successful partnership and collaboration are based on our shared focus for innovation, commercial simplicity and flexibility in business aviation communications,” says Intelsat senior vice president, mobility Mark Rasmussen. “FlexExec is the only broadband solution fully integrated with the SD Plane Simple antenna solution which is a huge testimony to the power and adaptivity of the Intelsat network.”

FlexExec is a global, multi-layered, redundant high-throughput satellite network designed exclusively for business aviation with ubiquitous, always-available access and features speeds up to 15×2 Mbps globally.

SD used its own Dassault Falcon 2000LX aircraft to gather the flight data during the qualification process. Testing spanned more than 115 flight hours over 62 individual legs. Some 250GB of data were transmitted to deliver consistent data streaming across multiple devices during the series of international test flights.