Aireon and FlightAware Announce Qatar Airways as GlobalBeacon Launch Partner
GlobalBeacon will provide Qatar Airways with real-time worldwide aircraft tracking that complies with ICAO Global Aeronautical Distress Safety System recommendations
Montreal, Canada (September 26, 2016) - Aireon LLC and FlightAware announced today that Qatar Airways will be the first airline to adopt the new GlobalBeacon„ solution to meet the International Civil Aviation Organization's (ICAO) Global Aeronautical Distress Safety System (GADSS) recommendations.
The agreement will provide Qatar Airways' Integrated Operations Centre with minute-by-minute, global tracking of Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) equipped aircraft by 2018.
GlobalBeacon combines FlightAware's worldwide flight tracking information - - including origin, destination, flight plan route, position, estimated time of arrival - with data from Aireon's space-based ADS-B aircraft surveillance system, due to be operational by 2018. The solution will provide Qatar Airways with state-of-the-art technology to meet and exceed GADSS requirements and recommendations.
"Qatar Airways is a leader in the aviation industry and their proactive approach to implementing the GADSS recommendations reinforces that point," said Aireon CEO, Don Thoma. "With a modern fleet of 190 aircraft flying all over the world, across remote and oceanic airspace, Qatar Airways and GlobalBeacon are an ideal match and no new avionics will be required. We're excited to welcome them as a partner."
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: "As one of the fastest growing airlines in the world, both our needs, and our drive to deliver the very best services for our global passengers, are continually evolving. GlobalBeacon will seamlessly integrate with our existing ICAO 2018 compliant flight watch technology (Total Operations System), and further enhance our fleet management by providing updates every minute.
"I am proud of Qatar Airways' leadership position in this vital area of aviation safety and awareness. We will be the first airline in the world to have the capability to use worldwide satellite air surveillance to support our airline operations and to achieve the highest of flight tracking standards ahead of the ICAO 2021 mandate."
About FlightAware
FlightAware, a part of Collins Aerospace, is a leading provider of real-time and historical flight information and insights to the global aviation community. FlightAware serves all segments of the aviation marketplace through best-in-class applications and data services that provide comprehensive information about the current and predicted movement of aircraft. Through the collection, interpretation, and enrichment of hundreds of sources of data, including data from FlightAware's own proprietary terrestrial ADS-B network with tens of thousands of receivers spanning seven continents in 200 countries and territories, FlightAware transforms millions of raw flight data elements and delivers them as coherent, easy-to-consume flight stories. As a single source of accurate and actionable data for aviation players large and small, FlightAware is Central to Aviation®.
