Inmarsat selects Thales to develop critical infrastructure for European Aviation Network

Inmarsat, a provider of global mobile satellite communications, has selected Thales to develop and manufacture a Complementary Ground Component (CGC) terminal for its European Aviation Network (EAN) high-speed inflight connectivity solution. The agreement marks a key milestone for EAN, which was unveiled by Inmarsat last year as the first aviation passenger connectivity solution across European airspace to integrate an advanced satellite network and LTE-based ground network, the latter will be operated by Deutsche Telekom. Aircraft will switch automatically between satellite and terrestrial connectivity using an onboard network communicator for optimal service delivery. As a result, airlines will be able to