Cathay, Dragonair making e-history

by CHIEF CORRESPONDENT, TOM BALLANTYNE  

September 1st 2013

Print Friendly

All eyes are on Cathay Pacific Airways and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Dragonair, as they move towards operating Asia’s first fully e-Enabled fleets, according to Michael DiGeorge, managing director at ARINC Asia Pacific Division.Read More »

It’s all about connectivity, he said, helping airlines streamline their operations by integrating communications in the air and on the ground. 

'[An e-Enabled fleet] gives Cathay [and Dragonair] a real opportunity to streamline their operations across all of their businesses from flight ops, IT and inflight services to engineering'

Michael DiGeorge Managing Director ARINC Asia Pacific Division

The deal will be the most significant upgrade in flight deck technology in three decades. The project was launched last year after a two-year trial. Cathay and Dragonair’s fleets are being outfitted with the most advanced information management system developed for Asian carriers.

“That’s 180 aircraft we are installing with a whole wi-fi network, including electronic flight bags (EFBs), on the aircraft, as well as providing the ground infrastructure so airlines can communicate and deliver flight operations manuals, navigation charts and other communication aids,” said DiGeorge.

“This gives Cathay [and Dragonair] the opportunity to streamline their operations across all of their businesses from flight ops to IT and inflight services to engineering.

“This is the first project of its kind in Asia. We see that other airlines are now showing interest in the whole e-Enabled capability and technology.”

Said Cathay’s general manager of flight operations, Russell Davie, at the launch of the project: “E-Enablement is very much the future of aviation for Cathay Pacific. Increased operational efficiency of our flights has a clear and direct impact on our continued ability to offer passengers award-winning service, as well as increased operational efficiencies across the organization.”

Said ARINC’s DiGeorge: “The e-Enabled structure is basically something that will be handled through the wi-fi network at the airport. A lot of the data transfer will happen, for instance with Cathay, at its hub in Hong Kong.

“When a plane lands the wi-fi network at the airport will connect with the e-Enabled system on the aircraft and start transmitting the data through a delivery system on the ground.

“There has been a breakthrough in communication technology in our everyday life with wi-fi, 3G, 4G, iPads and so on. We are finding these technologies are reaching into the air transport industry.

“That’s in contrast to a few years ago when we were just beginning to make use of these technologies.

“The e-Enabled aircraft is a big development. In the past, it was could we provide EFBs in the aircraft, possibly using iPads. Today, it is can we upgrade the whole communication network within the aircraft and integrate it with the ground so they have a totally e-Enabled capability far beyond EFBs?”

E-Enablement goes beyond cockpit communications. It is part of a wider revolution sweeping through the airline industry. It includes an explosion in the use of mobile technology and broadband networks that are transforming inflight service.

A number of Asia-Pacific carriers have announced plans to introduce inflight wi-fi and broadband connections to allow passengers to email, social network, instant message or shop with their iPad or iPhone.

'E-Enablement is very much the future of aviation for Cathay Pacific'

Russell Davie General Manager, Flight Operations Cathay Pacific Airways

The technology is dramatically changing the way cabin crew operate. IT leader, SITA, has produced a CrewTablet that replaces all the paper-based processes with digital records. Until recently flight attendants normally filled in around 15 forms per flight manually.

Some 2,000 CrewTablets have been distributed to Malaysia Airlines crew and the use of iPads by flight attendants has become a common sight across the region. SITA said annual consumer sales of tablets, which will reach 191 million this year, are expected to rise to 350 million by 2017.

The tablets bring huge advantages to flight and cabin crews because they allow them to transmit information during flights. If maintenance crew can be on hand with the right tools and equipment to fix a problem reported during a flight, turnaround times are shortened.

EFBs can be updated during flight. Cabin crew can provide better service, for example, in changing bookings for connecting flights in the event of delays.

Demand for improved communications has seen an upsurge in spending in the communications satellite market. According to U.S.-based Forecast International, which specializes in long-range industry forecasts, the commercial communications satellite market will be worth $57.7 billion by 2022.

It tracks 45 satellite production programmes and said 440 individual communications satellites are expected to be produced during that timeframe.

While these satellites are used across a wide range of sectors, from marine to defence, Forecast’s aerospace systems analyst, Bill Ostrove, said as market demand grows for data-intensive applications, such as high-definition video and broadband Internet, so will the need for technologies that form the backbone of global networks.

Satellites are a popular solution for mobile broadband applications, particularly for airlines planning wi-fi for their fleets. Ka-band satellites will be the primary suppliers of the bandwidth needed to provide in-air broadband Internet connections.