Viasat and Deutsche Telekom bump up in-flight connectivity in Mediterranean Sea

Three new ground stations are now operating in the region, bolstering Viasat’s European Aviation Network (EAN) in the Eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. There are now 300 ground network antenna sites already set up across Europe supporting the satellite connectivity service.

The enhanced capacity is particularly beneficial for passengers flying to and from Cyprus with the Greek airline AEGEAN, which launched its in-flight connectivity service, powered by EAN, in 2022.

EAN is described in the release as ‘a unique example of European technological and regulatory leadership’, which allows travellers on most intra-European flights access to in-flight internet. It is a combination of Viasat’s S-band satellite coverage and ground components operated by Deutsche Telekom.

“EAN continues to deliver a great in-flight connectivity solution for certain fleets operating in Europe and we’re proud to augment the satellite capacity for passengers travelling to and from Cyprus with AEGEAN,” said Shameem Hashmi, VP, Aviation Strategy at Viasat. “We’ve been thoroughly impressed by AEGEAN’s commitment to enhancing its passenger experience however possible. We know that reliable, high-speed broadband connectivity at 30,000 feet is crucial, and now, passengers travelling on every domestic route offered by AEGEAN can benefit.”

Rolf Nafziger, Senior Vice President of Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier, added: “With Viasat, we launched the European Aviation Network with a vision to bring outstanding passenger connectivity to Europe’s aviation industry. It is amazing to see it grow from strength to strength in terms of customers and passenger usage. One of EAN’s key advantages for airline customers is that it’s future-proof as we can adapt and expand our ground network at any time based on actual requirements. We proved this a couple of years ago with the North Sea expansion, and once again now, when EAN’s latest customer AEGEAN had such a need, which we were able to fulfil together with Viasat and Deutsche Telekom’s subsidiary in Greece, Cosmote.”

Satellite connectivity, or non-terrestrial networks, are not new, but there has certainly been a ramping up of both investment and rollout in recent years. To get Intelsat’s view on the use cases of space-based internet beyond hard to reach areas, check out our interview here. And for an in depth view of the entire sector, including it’s history and what we can expect in the future, check out our deep dive Satellite disruption: how LEO and D2D are impacting telecoms.