Intelsat to upgrade Japan Airlines to 2Ku connectivity

Integrated satellite and terrestrial network and inflight connectivity services provider Intelsat has announced it has reached an agreement with its long-time customer Japan Airlines (JAL) to upgrade approximately 50 Boeing 737s and 767s to the company’s 2Ku in-flight connectivity solution.

“We value the trust that JAL has placed in Intelsat throughout our 10-year relationship,” said Dave Bijur, Senior Vice President of Commercial for Intelsat Commercial Aviation. “JAL was Intelsat’s first non-U.S. commercial aviation customer, and we look forward to continuing to support JAL’s market-leading inflight connectivity service in Japan where their guests enjoy free service.”

JAL’s subsidiary airline J-AIR Co. Ltd is also installing the company’s 2Ku system on its Embraer E190 aircraft, with a planned complete installation of the 2Ku system on 14 E190s by the end of 2024. J-AIR is to become the first regional airline in Japan to offer inflight entertainment and connectivity services.

“Intelsat has been a trusted partner of JAL since 2013,” said Mitsuko Tottori, Senior Vice President of Customer Experience at Japan Airlines. “Working with Intelsat, we are able to offer more robust inflight connectivity for our passengers. We are proud to have been among the first airlines in the world to offer free service for all passengers flying on our domestic routes starting in 2017 and look forward to the greater speed and reliability benefits the new 2Ku terminals will bring.”

According to Intelsat, its 2Ku service includes a mechanically-steered, phased-array antenna that will replace the gimballed antenna Intelsat originally installed on the airline’s fleet nearly 10 years ago. The service is designed to operate on today’s high-throughput satellites, as well as with Intelsat’s fleet of new software-defined satellites that will enter service in 2025.