Inmarsat has signed a contract with Mahata Aero Teknologi (MAT), an Indonesian wireless technology provider, to deploy Inmarsat’s GX Aviation inflight broadband solution on a fleet of 50 Airbus A320 aircraft for Indonesian low-cost airline Citilink.
Inmarsat will also partner with Lufthansa Systems and Lufthansa Technik to implement a world-class Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) connectivity offering for passengers across the Citilink fleet, supporting the airline’s continued work to provide an innovative onboard experience and enhance loyalty among its growing customer base. Installations onboard the first Citilink aircraft are expected to commence later this year.
The contract was finalized only a few months after Inmarsat, Lufthansa Systems and Lufthansa Technik signed a Memorandum of Understanding with MAT, the first Indonesian tech company to provide inflight WiFi services, to meet the requirements of Citilink.
The carrier, a subsidiary of Indonesian national airline Garuda, was named Asia’s Best LCC at the TripAdvisor Travellers Choice Awards 2018 and has a four-star rating by Skytrax.
GX Aviation is the world’s first and only global, high-speed inflight internet service delivered through a wholly-owned and operated network of High-Throughput Satellites (HTS). It allows passengers to seamlessly browse the internet, stream videos, check social media and more during flights.
Executive Comments
Juliandra Nurtjahjo, President and CEO of Citilink, said that as a modern, digitally-focused airline, it’s imperative that the company offers passengers a world-class inflight WiFi service. The combined strengths of Inmarsat, MAT, Lufthansa Systems and Lufthansa Technik will ensure the delivery of gold-standard broadband onboard all of Citilink's flights.
Philip Balaam, President of Inmarsat Aviation, added that together with partners MAT, Lufthansa Systems and Lufthansa Technik, the company looks forward to delivering an outstanding connectivity service to Citilink and its passengers. Citilink’s adoption of GX Aviation, and signing of this contract mere months after the MoU, are testament to the importance of inflight connectivity to passengers today and Citilink’s confidence in the Inmarsat solution. This partnership also represents a significant milestone for Inmarsat in one of the company's priority regional markets.”
Iwan Setiawan, Managing Director of PT Mahata Aero Teknologi (MAT), noted that the end-to-end inflight WiFi solution the company will provide with Inmarsat, Lufthansa Systems and Lufthansa Technik is truly cutting-edge and the perfect fit for an innovative low-cost airline such as Citilink. Together with the strategic partners, MAT has become the first Indonesian tech company that is transforming idle passengers onboard flights into fully entertained, engaged and satisfied travelers for airline customers.
Jan-Peter Gaense, Head of Passenger Experience Products and Solutions at Lufthansa Systems, reported that the company's partnership with MAT, Inmarsat and Lufthansa Technik will directly support Citilink’s long-term inflight WiFi ambitions. In particular, the firm's digital BoardConnect platform’s open architecture and use of modern docker technology will enable a range of e-commerce services, serving as a perfect base to monetize the airline’s inflight WiFi.
