European Aviation Network brings broadband to the skies

Several companies have come together to build an integrated satellite and LTE network that will give airline passengers across Europe access to in-flight broadband.

The European Aviation Network (EAN) was implemented by Inmarsat and Deutsche Telekom, alongside Nokia and Thales. It will provide a combination of S-band satellite coverage as well as terrestrial-based LTE coverage from around 300 ground stations, the first time such an integrated system has been achieved.

Test flights have been undertaken in the UK, and the first live over-the-air EAN connection was made by Deutsche Telekom and Nokia in the latter’s Stuttgart lab. That transmission consisted of a broadband video conference where both parties were connected over the LTE network. The ground network for EAN differs from regular LTE networks as it needs to work at speeds of up to 1,200km/h, at cruising altitudes requiring cells of up to 150km.