Honeywell’s new satellite communications system certified by FAA

Honeywell’s new helicopter communications system, the Aspire 200, has been certified by the FAA for use on the Airbus AS350 and Sikorsky UH-60 Blackhawk.

The Federal Aviation Administration awarded Honeywell a supplemental type certificate (STC) for the new Aspire 200 satellite communications systems on these helicopters. It has also applied for FAA STC and EASA approvals for the Bell 429.

“There has always been a need for in-flight connectivity on helicopters, particularly to support VIP, air ambulance, police and military ISR applications,” said Mark Goodman, product director, Honeywell Aerospace. “The small, lightweight Aspire 200 provides a robust, reliable link that works through helicopter rotors.”

Honeywell will also be launching a GoDirect Cabin Connectivity service including a SatCom Toolkit and global mobile data. This allows for real-time access to emails, videoconferencing and higher speed broadband transmission.

The system, when combined with the SwiftBroadband High-Data Rate (HDR) software package will bring higher-band WiFi to helicopter cabins.