Satcom Direct sends Acars messages over Inmarsat I-4 network

Satellite communications services reseller Satcom Direct last month announced it has sent and received AFIS/Acars datalink messages over the Inmarsat I-4 satellite constellation, marking a first for a satcom service provider. The messages were broadcast from a Global Express using Satcom Direct’s FlightDeck Freedom service in collaboration with the SITA datalink network. AFIS/Acars messaging can be used by pilots to upload flight plans, receive weather updates, obtain ATC clearances and send other flight-related information, including position reports. FlightDeck Freedom interfaces with Honeywell’s AFIS and Primus Epic, Rockwell Collins’s CMU-4000, Teledyne Controls’ Telelink and Universal Avionics’ Unilink datalink transceivers.