Honeywell is "re-evaluating" its Total Aircraft Information System (TAIS) - including its Inflightmail service - for the air transport market, as it believes the business case does not support the product for the sector at this time. Honeywell's decision is expected to be the first in a number of moves in the crowded airborne e-mail sector.
TAIS included the manufacturer's airborne intranet and e-mail service - Inflightmail - along with credit card verification for airborne sales and e-commerce and terminal area wireless network services.
The avionics manufacturer suspended its TAIS airline activities in February, although it continues to market the product to the business aircraft market. Honeywell is stressing, however, that it could return to the air transport market once the business case can support it. "The business model doesn't make [commercial] sense. We are waiting for conditions to change," says Honeywell, adding that high bandwidth technology is crucial for the success of in-flight e-mail.
Although there is considerable interest in in-flight e-mail and internet-type services, airlines have not rushed to commit to the services. Singapore Airlines (SIA) was due to conduct a one-aircraft trial of TAIS, including Inflightmail, late last year, but that never happened, while Swissair had also been lined up for a trial.
Other e-mail service providers have not fared much better. Although Tenzing has Air Canada, Scandinavian Airlines and SIA signed up for trials of its airborne e-mail and internet-type services, only Cathay Pacific has committed to offering the services on its fleet. Inflightonline, meanwhile, is finding securing an airline launch customer a longer process than originally expected and is having greater success in the business jet market.
The broadband offerings, which include Boeing's Connexion and Rockwell/News Corp's In-Flight Network, have also failed to secure launch customers yet.
Source: Flight International
