Gogo, the leading provider of in-flight connectivity, has announced that its next generation satellite connectivity service, 2ku, is ready for takeoff, according to a press release issued by Gogo.
The company's latest technology has received the final Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Gogo's 2ku is currently installed in a 737 500 test plane and is ready for a test flight, according to the press release.
The company plans to launch the commercial service of the 2ku later this year.
Anand Chari, chief technology officer of Gogo, said in the press release that the clearance is a "significant milestone for Gogo and a seminal event for in-flight Internet."
"Clearing this regulatory hurdle brings us one step closer to enabling our airline partners and their passengers to enjoy the future of in-flight Internet," he said. "We believe this will be the best performing technology for the global commercial aviation market bar none."
Engadget adds that if the testing of Gogo's new technology goes well, people could expect a 70 Mbps connectivity on select flights once the technology becomes commercially available.
This is due to the fact that the new technology has a different way of getting the internet to the plane.
Engadget adds that the old system was to use terrestrial radio towers to transmit internet connection to the plane.
This is similar to the ones cell phone towers use, except the antenna points to the sky.
The 2ku satellite system uses Ku-band satellites, orbiting 22,000 miles above to earth, to send information to the plane, according to Engadget.
This is similar to Gogo's ground-to-orbit experiments, but with an added antenna that is dedicated to sending information back to the satellite.
Gogo said in the press release that seven commercial airlines have already signed up for either a trial or fleet deployment of the 2ku system.
The airlines who signed up will cover more than 500 commercial aircraft.
Once the new system is launched later this year, the company plans to rapidly install the 500 backlog of 500 aircraft by 2016, according to the press release.
