Stevewnichols

Inmarsat was originally founded in 1979 as the International Maritime Satellite Organisation (Inmarsat), a not-for-profit international organization, set up at the behest of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), a United Nations body, for the purpose of establishing a satellite communications network for the maritime community. It began trading in 1982.
More than 11,000 aircraft rely on global in-flight connectivity from Inmarsat, the most widely-used satellite operator in the industry. Inmarsat was also the first company to provide global safety services that comply with the requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
A single Inmarsat installation enables a diverse range of applications for both the cockpit and the cabin - from safety communications, weather and flight-plan updates, to email, internet and phone services.

Details

Inmarsat's Air Transport services allow airline passengers to make calls, and access email and the internet - while enabling the pilot to maintain direct contact with air traffic control, receive real-time weather information, access the most fuel-efficient oceanic flight paths and transmit the aircraft's position and maintenance status to ground staff.

In terms of Business Aviation, 23 of the top 25 Fortune 500 companies use Inmarsat systems on their business jets. This enables passengers to carry on with business between take-off and landing, while ensuring that pilots minimise expensive flying time, and maximise safety.

For Governments, Inmarsat enables heads of state, or commanders in transit and at the scene of operations, to have reliable access to command, control and information resources on the ground - facilitating situational awareness.

Benefits

Safe operations
Inmarsat's safety services were the first to comply with ICAO requirements.
Global coverage
Network coverage of most air traffic routes, except the extreme polar regions.
Reliability
The company owns and operate its satellites, giving it total control over service availability.
Flexibility
A single installation enables a diverse range of cockpit and cabin applications.
High performance
Broadband services are paving the way for the "connected aircraft" of the future.
Cost-effective
Services that deliver scalable, cost-efficient bandwidth.
Easy installation
Inmarsat-enabled antennas are now common on most current-production airliners.

Applications

Inmarsat's services support all key cockpit and cabin applications, for crew and passenger communications:

Crew

Safety communications, voice communications. Electronic flight bag (EFB), flight plan, weather and chart updates
Engine performance monitoring and fault reporting for major systems
General operational planning
Customer relationship information support
Crew reporting and general admin.

Passengers

Telephony: in-seat, mobile, VoIP, text messaging
Email, internet, intranet and instant messaging
In-flight news and entertainment updates.
Secure VPN access (business and government aviation sectors)
Videoconferencing (business and government aviation sectors)
Large file transfer (business and government aviation sectors)
Government network access (government sector)
Safety communications (government sector)
Telemedicine (government sector)
STU-III encrypted communications (government sector)
Real-time air-ground collaboration (government sector)

Services

Inmarsat offers a number of different services for the aeronautical industry.

SwiftBroadband

SwiftBroadband offers simultaneous voice and broadband data with contended IP data at up to 432kbps. Please see the separate Wikipedia entry by clicking on the SwiftBroadband link on the left.

Swift 64

In its basic 64kbps-per-channel form, Swift 64 provides ample bandwidth for applications such as high-quality voice, email, internet and intranet access, large file transfer and videoconferencing.
Data rates can be increased to 256kbps through channel bonding and even further through data compression. Swift 64 offers two services, mobile ISDN and the Mobile Packet Data Service (MPDS), which are readily integrated with ground-based networks.
Swift 64 avionics are compatible with Inmarsat's Aero H / H+ high-gain antennas and onboard infrastructure, which are already installed on many airliners and corporate aircraft.
Its capabilities include:

64kbps data per channel
Choice of Mobile ISDN or packet data mode (MPDS)
One, two and four-channel avionics
Standalone or simultaneous operation with Inmarsat H/H+ through the same high-gain antenna
Upgradable to SwiftBroadband (depending on existing equipment)
Compatible with government-grade encryption and secure communications standards, including STU-IIIb and STE, Taclane, KIV-7 and Brent.

Classic range

These support high-quality voice, low-speed data and safety communications. They are used by most of the world's airlines and corporate jet operators, as well as governments for VIP aircraft, coastguard and defence agencies. All services are available on both the Inmarsat-3 (I-3) and Inmarsat-4 (I-4) satellites within their seven associated footprints. The six services, which vary in capability, equipment size and cost, are:
Aero H
Multi-channel voice, 10.5kbps fax and data, delivered via a high-gain antenna within the satellites' global beams. ICAO approved for safety services.
Aero H+
Multi-channel voice, 10.5kbps fax and data at a lower cost per connection. ICAO approved for safety services.
Aero I
Multi-channel voice, 4.8kbps circuit-mode data and fax, delivered via an intermediate-gain antenna. Available in the spot beams of the Inmarsat-3 satellites. ICAO approved for safety services. Also supports low-speed packet data supported in both the Inmarsat-3 spot beams and in the full footprint of the Inmarsat-4 satellites.
Aero L
Global data communications at 600 to 1200bps, principally to support air traffic control and airline operations. Supports Acars/Aircom messaging. ICAO approved for safety services.
Mini M Aero
Single-channel voice, fax or 2400bps data, for general aviation and smaller corporate aircraft. Supports STU-III encrypted voice.
Aero C
Supports two-way 600bps store-and-forward data messaging, polling and integrated GPS position-reporting for non-safety-related purposes.

SwiftBroadband coverage

The Inmarsat SwiftBroadband service is now available around the globe, delivered through its global network of three Inmarsat-4 (I-4) satellites.
The map below depicts the three I-4 satellite world coverage regions:
Map of world showing Inmarsat 4 coverage

The map below shows the coverage of the Inmarsat-3 (I-3) satellites (Swift64 and Classic services):
Map of world showing Inmarsat 3 coverage

Aviation safety/fuel economy

Satellite-aided ATC

There are two techniques of satellite-aided air traffic control (ATC):
Automatic dependent surveillance (ADS) - Automatic reporting of an aircraft's real-time position to air traffic control centres, and
Controller / pilot datalink communications (CPDLC) - Providing direct contact between flight deck and controller for in-flight re-routeing, due to wind changes, and for other operational purposes.

Distress reporting

In an emergency, the captain of an Inmarsat-equipped aircraft can make direct contact with air traffic control to alert the search and rescue services. The system is set up so the cockpit has priority over, and can pre-empt, communications for any other purpose.

Fuel-saving routeing

Oceanic air traffic control via Inmarsat was first introduced on Pacific routes in 1995. In-flight re-routeing in response to changing winds can save 15 minutes or more, equal to annual fuel economies worth many thousands of dollars. It is now well-established on major routes over oceanic and wilderness regions.
In the North Atlantic, the speed and flexibility of controller / pilot datalink communications mean clearances for flight-level and speed changes are more quickly available, again yielding valuable savings.

The future

The safety capabilities of Inmarsat's system are designed to be fully compliant with the International Civil Aviation Organization's (ICAO) plans for an integrated global traffic management system.

Traffic management

A pillar of the ICAO's strategy is a global, air-to-ground and ground-to-ground network called the Aeronautical Telecommunications Network (ATN), to increase safety and improve management of aircraft.
ATN is intended to carry data from a number of systems - including VHF datalink, Mode-S secondary surveillance radar and satellite communications - to provide seamless global information transfer among air traffic management providers, aircraft operators, service providers and passengers.
ATN is being introduced over several years. In the interim, Inmarsat-based FANS-1/A avionics and the ACARS (Aircraft Communication Addressing and Reporting System) datalink protocol is being used to support communications on oceanic flights.

Benefits of ATN

Enhanced safety
Fuel savings
Reduced communications costs
Increased reliability
Reduced separation
Extra capacity to meet rising demand for airspace.

Satellite datalink could ultimately contribute to the introduction of "free flight" - allowing aircraft commanders to select the best available routes and navigate safely without reference to ground-based air traffic control.

External links

ENDS