Inmarsat to design airborne Net access

NEWS Inmarsat is to develop high-speed data services for aircraft passengers and crew, which will enable them to access the Internet, email and corporate intranets whilst in the air. Inmarsat has already trialled the 64 kb/sec satellite technology in the land mobile market. It claims the new service will be "relatively straightforward" to deliver. Johnny Nemes, manager of Inmarsat's aeronautical engineering, said the service would be part of each aeroplane's infrastructure. "We'll test them to be part of the aircraft electronics," he told Silicon.com. "They won't interfere with navigation systems." The first services are expected late next year, in partnership with Canada's EMS Technologies.