Lufthansa Systems Adds Neos to Client Roster for Boardconnect IFE System

Lufthansa Systems adds Neos to client roster for BoardConnect IFE system

By Mary Jane Pittilla on October, 7 2015 | Inﬂight Entertainment

Italian airline Neos will oﬀer its passengers inﬂight entertainment via the wireless BoardConnect system manufactured by Lufthansa Systems.

The IFE platform gives passengers access to information, entertainment and services on their own devices. The two companies recently signed a ﬁve-year contract for the wireless solution. BoardConnect will initially be installed in the three 767-300ER aircraft in the Neos ﬂeet.

Neos is the latest European airline after Lufthansa and El Al to opt for BoardConnect.

“We were won over by the system’s reliability and 100% inflight availability,” said Carlo Stradiotti, CEO of Neos. “With BoardConnect we can offer our passengers exactly the kind of modern inflight entertainment that matches our brand.”

BoardConnect enables passengers to access TV shows, music and games by connecting to a WiFi network through an app on their own tablets or smartphones. The system also includes a shopping feature and a moving map.

The flexibility of the BoardConnect IFE system means that Neos, which usually flies with passengers who have booked trips through different travel providers, can offer these groups different content. Neos also operates full charter flights and can now provide these customers with a special service: In addition to the existing entertainment program offered through BoardConnect, additional content relating to the travel destination or the company organizing the charter flight, for example, can now be included in the system at short notice.

The portable version of BoardConnect is designed for carriers wishing to avoid high capital outlay of permanently installed hardware in smaller aircraft that are used for short- and medium-haul ﬂights. The advantage of the all-in-one solution is that all of the technical components needed for an IFE system – such as a server and access points – are combined in a single device, the Mobile Streaming Unit (MSU). An MSU can supply up to 50 passengers with streamed content. This means that in narrow-body aircraft two to three MSUs are suﬃcient to provide all passengers with an IFE experience.

The MSU is about the size of a conventional tablet and weighs less than 1.5 kilograms, so there is no need for elaborate cabling. MSUs therefore qualify as non-permanently installed equipment and can be mounted or removed without affecting other components in the aircraft, for example in the galley. This eliminates high costs for hardware, fitting and certification, the company said.

Italy’s Air Dolomiti will be the ﬁrst carrier to use the new BoardConnect Portable.