[SatNews] A veteran of the SATCOM market is joining the Company...

OnAir has strengthened its North American operation with the appointment of Richard Nordstrom as Managing Director for North America. Ian Dawkins, CEO of OnAir, said, “Richard’s main priority is to develop OnAir's business in North America and he joins us at an interesting time. It is now very clear that passengers welcome inflight connectivity and North American airlines recognize they need a satellite connection if they are going to provide passenger connectivity on international flights. And I very much hope the U.S. will soon catch up with the rest of the world and allow inflight mobile phone services. Mobile OnAir and Internet OnAir are offered by 12 airlines, operating from six continents, and we haven’t seen a single problem arising from people using their phones. The U.S. position is making them less competitive with fast growing international airlines outside the U.S.”

Nordstrom is a veteran of the satellite communication market for both the air transport and maritime sectors. In maritime, he was Sales and Marketing Director at Connexion by Boeing and a strategic consultant to satellites providers for their aviation market. He was instrumental in the development of underwater wireless communications systems and their integration with surface systems, and managed a national VHF telecoms network buildout for the U.S. Coast Guard and maritime industry.