Banyan Air Service, based at Florida’s Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (FXE), completed the second of two Bombardier Challenger 604s with the Aircell AGT-4000 Gogo in-flight internet system. One of the installations included the Aircell Axxess two-channel Iridium system, while both aircraft were certified for Wi-Fi in the cabin. The avionics installation was done at the customer’s maintenance base during a minimum maintenance inspection.
“After repeated requests from our charter customers asking if our fleet is Wi-Fi equipped we decided to seek advice from an avionics shop experienced with these type of installations,” said Barry Ellis, CEO of charter company Hop-a-Jet based at FXE. “After our first aircraft was outfitted with connectivity we noticed an increased utilization rate within the first month. This convinced our management team to outfit the remainder of our large cabin fleet and Banyan Air Service performed the upgrades in our own hangar and delivered the aircraft on time.”
“Connectivity continues to be the hottest product in the avionics industry,” states Brian Wilson, Banyan’s director of avionics. “Today passengers are demanding Wi-Fi in the cabin and while some charter operators were quick to see the competitive edge of having Wi-Fi onboard; others are now racing to catch up so their aircraft are not left sitting on the tarmac.”