Gogo has been on a mission for the past three decades to continuously deliver the best inflight connectivity solution for every business aviation aircraft, regardless of the size of the aircraft or where it flies.
As part of that commitment to provide the best inflight connectivity experience, Gogo will be migrating it’s network to LTE, which is expected to be completed in early 2026. Anyone flying with one of Gogo’s legacy ATG systems (5000, 4000, 2000 or 1000) will need to upgrade to an AVANCE system by early 2026 – that’s when the network will switch completely to LTE and the old network will be shut down. Once that happens, the legacy ATG systems will no longer be operational.
And while 2026 might seem like a long time down the road, demand for shop space at MROs is already becoming limited, and with more than 3,000 aircraft flying with a legacy system on board today, some dealers are offering special programs to help facilitate the massive demand so that customers don't get caught scrambling in 2025 (remember ADS-B?).
“The migration to LTE technology for our network is great news for our legacy customers,” said Sergio Aguirre, Gogo’s president and COO. “When operators put an AVANCE system on board, they’ll see an immediate impact, and when the LTE network is turned on, they’ll see another boost in performance. The key here is to get the upgrade done as soon as possible and we’re offering significant incentives to make it affordable and as easy as possible.”
The incentives being offered to customers who upgrade to AVANCE are significant: $50,000 for an upgrade to AVANCE L5 and $25,000 for an upgrade to AVANCE L3 (MAX and PLUS configurations only).
“The incentives will expire, though, and there will be limitations on dealer availability,” Aguirre explained. “Getting the upgrade completed sooner than later ensures you’ll get space at a participating MRO. The closer to the deadline we get, the less likely you’ll get a dedicated slot.”
As it relates to aircraft downtime, Aguirre says that the company’s engineers have worked hard to develop installation guidelines for AVANCE systems so that upgrades can be completed as quickly as possible.
“It’s not a difficult installation,” he says. “For the AVANCE L3, you change the LRU, add some additional I/O, and, in some cases, may need to change cabling. AVANCE L5 also requires that you change the two belly-mounted antennas to bidirectional units.
“Once the AVANCE hardware is in the airplane, then future upgrades will be as simple as downloading new software,” Aguirre continues. “The simplicity of the installation is a big reason why we are encouraging customers to upgrade when their aircraft is in for routine maintenance or inspections. It’s not extensive; it just takes planning.”
Upgrade to AVANCE delivers immediate and long-term benefits
The upgrade to AVANCE will deliver immediate benefits for legacy ATG customers, and another boost when the LTE network is turned on. Some customers have already made the switch and they are already noticing the advantages AVANCE provides, including an immediate boost in performance.
Jason Talley is a pilot who flies a Citation CJ2+ primarily for his multiple business ventures. He recently upgraded from a Gogo ATG 5000 to an AVANCE L3 and talked about the benefits he’s enjoying as a result of the upgrade.
“I was blown away by the difference,” Talley said. “I’m not easily impressed and the L3 is so much more than I was expecting. The ATG 5000 was adequate, but with the L3 it’s a night and day difference. The AVANCE upgrade was 100% worth it. I was wholly unprepared for the difference in performance. Even the upgrade time was minimal, just five days.”
AVANCE also provides several exclusive features that bring benefits other systems in business aviation can’t provide, such as Gogo DASH and Gogo Vision, the leading inflight entertainment service in business aviation. Both are standard with all AVANCE systems.
With DASH, operators receive staged updates via email or through the DASH app. When a notification arrives, they need do little more than click to receive the latest update, just like you do on today’s smartphones.
“With AVANCE, we utilize the DASH tool to configure roles, show coverage maps, contact support, and monitor bandwidth,” said Ryan Johnson who is the pilot of a Dassault Falcon 900EX with an AVANCE L5 installed. “I fly a family-owned aircraft and at any given time there may be different generations on board from grandparents to young children. Sometimes there are as many as 15 people on a flight. When the younger generations are on board, we notice the digital consumption increases tremendously and the L5 meets those needs.”
Johnson also sang the praises of Gogo Vision. The family he flies takes several international trips a year, and when they leave the shores of North America, they are limited to very slow L-band satellite service, for only low-bandwidth uses like email. But with Gogo Vision on the AVANCE L5, they can choose from hundreds of current and classic movies, TV shows, and e-magazines – all without using any bandwidth and available anywhere in the world the family flies.
“I used to go and buy a bunch of specific DVDs before flights and sometimes I would often need to bring 15-20 of them on the aircraft with me,” Johnson said. “Gogo Vision eliminated all of that. The family loves it and it works well. And because we fly outside North America, I can’t wait to get Gogo Galileo installed.”
Since the AVANCE L5 is already installed on the Falcon, adding Gogo Galileo satellite service to the existing ATG service on the aircraft will be a relatively straightforward addition. All that will be required is a single, small fuselage-mounted electronically steered antenna (ESA) and just two cables – one for power in and the other for ethernet out. And with ATG and satellite service both being provided through a single provider, Johnson will be able to manage costs and simplify operations with a single bill.