SES won a large contract with Viva – one of the three largest airlines in Mexico. SES equipment will be installed with its multi-orbit system on 100 Airbus aircraft.

Combined with recent deals with Avianca and LATAM Airlines, in addition to American Airlines and Air Canada, SES says it is the leading provider of multi-orbit satellite-powered broadband inflight service in the Americas.

As with the other contracts, Viva will use SES’s solution which is very much “multi orbit”. This means the use of Geostationary orbits and connections along with low Earth orbit craft. SES has commercial relationships with Starlink and (via Intelsat) Eutelsat’s OneWeb.

“Viva’s passengers will soon benefit from reliable, multi-orbit satellite connectivity that will provide the same fast and dependable internet access they enjoy at home no matter where or when they fly. SES’s partnerships with growing airlines like Viva highlight how carriers throughout the Americas are leading the way when it comes to the most advanced connectivity. SES is the engine that powers inflight connectivity, a trusted partner that makes airline operations easier,” said Mike DeMarco, SES President of Mobility.

A total of 60 A320s and 40 A321s are set to offer the SES solution in the coming years. With the youngest Latin American fleet of Airbus A320s and A321s, Viva will be the first Mexico-based airline to offer service using SES’s new electronically steered array (ESA) antenna, which is less than seven centimetres tall and delivers reliable connectivity to the SES multi-orbit network. Connecting to satellites in different orbits provides consistent and reliable coverage no matter the location.

“Connectivity today is not a luxury – it’s part of how people live, work, and travel. Our goal is to make flying fit seamlessly into our passengers’ digital lives, instead of forcing them to disconnect. With this service, being in the air no longer means being offline,” added Pablo Gómez Gallardo, Chief Digital Officer at Viva.

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Categories: Articles, Broadband, Satellite

Tags: IFE, Mexico, SES