THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, SITA’S AIRCRAFT BUSINESS CONTINUED TO LEAD IN THE DIGITALIZATION OF FINANCIALLY AND ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE AIRCRAFT OPERATIONS, HELPING THE WORLD’S AIRLINES TO BECOME MORE EFFICIENT AND COST-EFFECTIVE.
SITA’s aircraft business provides systems, communications, data, and applications to airlines and business jet operators, Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs), air framers, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), and Maintenance and Repair Organizations (MROs).
Key strategic directions for SITA’s aircraft business: 2021-2022 and into the future
Providing leading cabin connectivity and aircraft communications, with best-in-class capacity and coverage, while building on capabilities in unified aircraft communications.
Enabling the growth and digital transformation of the aviation industry, while reducing its environmental impact, through exploiting new communications and data science technologies.
Co-innovating in areas critical for aviation’s future, including Urban Air Mobility, Green Operations, and new ways of working with AI / digital technologies such as blockchain, and more.
SITA’s aircraft business worked hard during another year of the pandemic to provide safe, efficient and sustainable aircraft operations, utilizing its knowledge and technology-agnostic capabilities to help the industry undertake a step-by-step digital shift.
The business saw many new customer contracts signed, while making increasing investments for the years ahead, through continued organic portfolio development across the year, as well as the strategic acquisition in July 2021 of Safety Line – specialists in digital solutions for aviation safety, efficiency, and sustainable flying.
Those portfolio developments led to multiple launches. New Digital Day of Operations products included Mission Control for remote collaborative working, for example, as well as eWAS Dispatch for flight tracking with real-time weather. OptiFlight, from Safety Line, became a vital part of SITA’s portfolio, to optimize take-off and cruising, reducing fuel consumption and aircraft emissions.
SITA’s CrewTab included a new retail module enabling airline crew to provide better digital services from tablets in flight, helping to generate revenue. New AIRCOM Server and e-Aircraft DataHub services were introduced, as well as new versions of Internet ONAIR and Mobile ONAIR 4G for cabin connectivity, with 5G-ready capability.
Meanwhile, SITA’s Unified Aircraft Communications introduced MyFleet Cockpit for airlines to monitor aircraft communication, including service status and fleet performance. It was also a crucial year of planning for Air Traffic Control (ATC) capabilities of the future, building on SITA’s industry-leading ATC Network and ATC Systems offerings.
A YEAR AT-A-GLANCE:
DIGITALIZING AIRCRAFT, FLIGHT OPERATIONS,
AND THE ON-BOARD EXPERIENCE
commercial air transport and business aviation aircraft use SITA’s services for their daily operations.
airline customers and 90 Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) are served by SITA’s aircraft business.
of aircraft equipped with SITA’s Cabin Connectivity Services, and rising.
use SITA’s data platform to improve decision-making.
pilots rely on eWAS Pilot for fuel-efficient flights and to avoid severe weather, with customers including Singapore Airlines, Air France and, in 2021, Aerologic.
of the world’s airlines use SITA’s AIRCOM service to connect every resource, from pilots to air traffic control.
A YEAR AT-A-GLANCE:
KEY ACHIEVEMENTS IN THE YEAR
acquisition in 2021 combines its OptiFlight solutions with SITA’s eWAS Pilot to minimize fuel burn and associated aircraft emissions. This enables more sustainable flying thanks to direct and efficient flight paths, and the management of disruption from weather impacts to reduce delays.
1st in the industry, with the launch of Bombardier’s new Challenger 3500 business jet line-fitted with SITA’s eWAS Pilot and OptiFlight.
experts
onboarded with Safety Line acquisition, bringing a deep understanding of aircraft, with skills around aircraft data, data analytics and machine learning.
analytics
for sustainable aviation is a key objective in an e‑Aircraft DataHub agreement with leading international aircraft OEM. It includes collaboration in the field of full flight data retrieval and processing for predictive maintenance, fuel optimization, and increased engine on-wing time for aircraft.
DataHub®
sees a new contract with Pratt & Whitney and others, based on work undertaken in 2021. DataHub provides a state-of-the-art, neutral aircraft data management service to enable collaboration among airlines, OEMs and digital service providers.
success
came in the year as the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) awarded SITA a seven-year Future Air Navigation System (FANS) Oceanic Datalink contract.
A YEAR AT-A-GLANCE:
PORTFOLIO MILESTONES IN THE YEAR
emissions
are a key advantage of eWAS, thanks to more effective fuel use and a decrease in operational costs, by avoiding weather-related disruption costs.
aviation
took a step forward in 2021 with the launch of SITA’s latest eWAS Pilot and the new eWAS Dispatch apps to optimize airline operations and build resilience to the impacts of climate change. SITA’s weather awareness apps help pilots and dispatchers make informed decisions on safety when planning weather diversions.
collaborative
working
on critical roles around the aircraft became possible with the launch of SITA’s Mission Control app for pilots, dispatchers, gate and ramp personnel. It helps better manage operations, optimizing turnarounds, handling diversions, minimizing carbon emissions, and more.
launched to digitalize pilot briefings, meaning less time waiting for paper upgrades to briefings, with greater situational awareness, quicker responses to route changes and digital flight plans.
inflight communications launched as a 1st in the industry. Mobile ONAIR 4G for cabin connectivity is ready for the 5G revolution.
successes
achieved with low-cost airlines World2Fly and Flyr as they embraced a range of SITA aircraft services in 2021, including DataLink, e-WAS Pilot, e-WAS Dispatch, Flight Messenger, Internet OnAir and more.
communications services Iridium Certus® integrated into SITA’s portfolio, for the reliable transmission of critical airline and air traffic control voice and data communications.
developed and trialed using blockchain, enabling identity verification without the need for network connectivity. Blockchain also becomes key to MRO operations. See Innovation.
