AIN Product Support Survey 2026: Avionics

Part two of AIN’s annual product support survey covers internal aircraft systems including flight deck avionics, cabin management systems (CMS)/in-flight entertainment (IFE) systems, and airborne connectivity hardware.

Some of the OEMs, such as Honeywell Aerospace, Collins Aerospace, and Garmin, have offerings in multiple arenas, while others, including Lufthansa Technik and Gogo, focus solely on one segment. Gulfstream is included in the survey due to its in-housed-developed CMS solutions.

In the flight deck avionics segment, while Garmin’s overall score (8.71) slipped slightly from last year’s results (8.83), it was still good enough for the Olathe, Kansas-­based company to maintain its long hold on the top spot of the segment and earn the highest position in the majority of the survey categories.

Among the manufacturers of CMS/IFE, Lufthansa Technik and its Nice system landed on top this year with an overall score of 7.88, a slight improvement over last year’s 7.73, enabling it to surpass last year’s best-in-category, Gulfstream (7.78). The Germany-based manufacturer scored highest in several survey categories such as parts availability and parts cost.

Lastly, in the airborne connectivity category, which now includes Starlink, Collins Aerospace this year unseated Garmin at the top slot with its overall score this year (8.63) up a quarter point from 2025’s survey results (8.38).

The aircraft electronics segment continues to face some headwinds, according to the company executives AIN spoke with for this report.

“The most significant issue facing the avionics industry today is the availability of skilled labor,” said Lee Moore, director of avionics product support at Garmin. “As experienced technicians and avionics managers retire, the industry must replace that vital expertise with a sufficiently trained and qualified workforce. Addressing this gap remains critical to sustaining growth and maintaining high levels of safety, service, and support for the global aviation industry.”

While he agreed with that assessment, Brian Barta, Collins Aerospace’s v-p and general manager for aftermarket avionics, added that another significant concern for the industry is “keeping pace with rising avionics complexity while continuing to deliver fast, reliable, and efficient support for operators. As fleets modernize at varying rates, customers are managing a wider mix of platforms, systems, and support requirements.”

As the industry looks to supply its customers, supply-chain issues are still a concern, according to Hinnerk Noelker, Lufthansa Technik’s head of OEM engineering and operations. He said the global electronics and semiconductor market continues to face “severe supply shortages and extended lead times due to increasing global demand competition,” particularly from the AI segment.

“While many of the supply-chain and parts production constraints that impacted the industry at the start of the decade have improved, some areas of pressure remain across the broader aerospace supply base,” Collins’ Barta explained. “Electronic components and specialized platform parts continue to require close management across the industry.”

With SpaceX’s Starlink now joining the airborne connectivity providers in AIN’s annual survey, a crowded field has become even more complex with the number of connectivity options available. “Operators are presented with multiple technologies, networks, service providers, and performance claims, making it increasingly difficult to determine which solution is genuinely the best fit for their aircraft and operational mission,” said Michael Skov Christensen, Gogo’s chief commercial officer, adding that the fastest solution is not always the right solution. “Factors such as mission profile, aircraft type, coverage requirements, reliability, regulatory considerations, cybersecurity, data privacy, future upgrade pathways, and total cost of ownership all need to be considered alongside bandwidth and speed.”

Garmin

Garmin once again reigned in AIN’s Product Support Survey for flight deck avionics, continuing a streak that has lasted throughout the category, this year with an overall 8.71 score that was about three-tenths higher than the next closest company (Collins Aerospace). Backing this up were leading scores in six categories in the flight deck avionics segment—reliability (9.25), parts availability (8.89), AOG response (8.73), tech representatives (8.71), cost-per-hour programs (8.67), and cost of parts (7.73).

In airborne connectivity, Garmin’s overall average of 8.58 was down from last year but still solid, placing the company just behind Collins Aerospace. Garmin also posted a strong 8.88 score in reliability, second only to Starlink.

While Garmin led in many of the flight deck areas, the company continues to invest in “self-­service” capabilities to provide even more access to support, said Garmin’s Moore. This includes expanding the company’s knowledge base and video resources.

The avionics manufacturer previously had introduced automatic database subscription renewal, simplifying account management and minimizing the need for support, Moore added.

In tandem, Garmin has focused on targeted improvements of its database functions, such as refining Database Concierge to ensure that it provides faster and more reliable distribution and Garmin Aviation Database Manager to streamline updates and overall usability. In addition, the company has enabled fully automatic monthly database updates with its GDL 60 datalink.

Beyond its online and automation support, Garmin is investing in a range of training initiatives to support both customers and industry partners.

This includes expanding the curriculum to build on the Garmin Aviation Training Academy and integrating it with Garmin’s learning management system to improve accessibility and tracking of pilot and technician training.

Digital and virtual training options were increased to cast a wider net for technicians. Garmin has added eLearning modules, full-length videos, virtual training classes, webinars, and other short, targeted content.

“The objective is to continue expanding dealer-focused training to ensure installers, technicians, and operators are well prepared to support increasingly complex systems,” Moore said, an effort that showed up in a strong tech representatives score of 8.71.

But in a continuous improvement effort, Garmin in the past year began to upgrade its core support platform to make case management more efficient and improve knowledge sharing across support teams. Further, it has been integrating artificial intelligence tools to bolster support. Associates have access to Microsoft Copilot, which improves the speed and accuracy of information retrieval across internal systems, he said.

“These efforts are designed to create greater consistency and visibility across our global support organization, while improving the speed and quality of issue resolution,” Moore said. “Collectively, these improvements strengthen the overall support infrastructure and contribute to a more consistent and efficient experience for both customers and dealers worldwide.”

Collins Aerospace

With entries in all three segments of the avionics portion of AIN’s Product Support Survey, Collins Aerospace provides global support for its broad portfolio of flight deck avionics, cabin management, and aircraft connectivity systems.

Over the past year, the RTX subsidiary has continued to strengthen its customer support ecosystem by expanding predictive maintenance capabilities and integrating aircraft health data into diagnostic systems; improving turnaround times for key repairs through capacity and parts routing optimization; and enhancing its digital customer portal to provide clearer visibility into repair status, parts availability, and technical support material.

In the field of airborne connectivity providers, Collins’ Satcom and ArincDirect Aircraft Connectivity services earned a top score of 8.63, improving from last year’s survey by a quarter point. It rated highest in the parts availability category (8.67), as well as AOG response (8.64) and technical representatives (9.01).

“These systems are supported by Collins’ 24/7 Customer Support Center, which provides rapid aircraft-on-ground assistance, real-time troubleshooting, and access to multidisciplinary specialists across the avionics portfolio,” said Collins’ Barta.

In the avionics segment, the OEM’s Pro Line and Fusion systems improved on their overall support score from last year by nearly a quarter of a point to receive an 8.40 score from AIN’s readers. While it trailed frontrunner Garmin in most of the individual categories, it scored highest in warranty fulfillment (8.78) and technical manuals (8.53).

The manufacturer ranked second (7.79) overall in the cabin management systems segment, with a slight decline from last year’s score. Its Venue system did earn the highest score in the overall reliability category (8.22). Collins scored a 7.55 in terms of parts availability, which placed it near the bottom of a category in which none of the manufacturers scored 8 or above.

“We continue to work proactively with our suppliers and customers to improve planning, optimize parts routing, and prioritize support for critical operational needs,” Barta told AIN. “Our focus remains on improving predictability, reducing turnaround times, and helping customers maintain fleet readiness.”

Honeywell Aerospace

Honeywell Aerospace completed its spinoff from parent company Honeywell at the end of June. The new company noted that it now has a “purpose-built” management rather than what previously came from a corporate holding company. “This milestone has enabled us to redesign our organization and operating model with a singular focus: delivering exceptional outcomes for our customers,” said Todd Owens, v-p of customer experience, adding that one of its most important initiatives has been the restructuring of the customer support organization to align directly with business segments. “This has improved accountability, accelerated decision--making, and enabled closer collaboration between customer support, engineering, manufacturing, and supply-chain teams.”

Honeywell is another triple threat in the cabin electronics portion of AIN’s annual Product Support Survey with entries in the avionics, cabin management, and airborne connectivity segments. This year, the company earned its highest score in the latter group, tallying a 7.92 overall, an increase of nearly half a point from last year’s results. Its multi-network JetWave X Ka-band satcom solution earned the company’s highest score in the technical manuals category (8.27).

“Our ongoing customer portal enhancements are focused on simplifying website navigation, improving content discoverability, and organizing information around customer workflows and job functions rather than internal product structures,” explained Owens. “This customer--centric approach makes it easier for operators, maintenance technicians, and support personnel to find the information and services they need.”

While AIN’s readers gave Honeywell’s JetWave X an 8.02 for parts availability, those parts came dearly, earning it the lowest score for cost (7.06).

In the cabin management segment, Honeywell’s Ovation system trailed the other OEMs, with a score of 7.70. That did represent an increase of 0.80 over last year’s results. As with the company’s connectivity system, survey respondents downgraded the Ovation system’s parts availability, giving the manufacturer the lowest score for the category among CMS producers (6.57). “The aerospace industry continues to face supply-chain challenges, and Honeywell Aerospace has remained focused on improving resilience, reliability, and customer responsiveness,” Owens noted.

Lastly, in the cockpit avionics segment, Honeywell lagged behind Garmin and Collins, with its Primus Epic, Apex, and legacy SPZ support receiving an overall 7.48 score, a quarter-point increase from its 2025 results. It notched its highest category score of 8.30 in overall avionics reliability but was once again dragged by the cost of parts, which received the lowest score (6.14) in this section of the survey.

In 2024, the company announced an investment of $84 million to expand its avionics manufacturing facility in Kansas, a move it said will enable the development of a strong and resilient domestic supply chain for next-generation avionics and printed circuit board assemblies, as it continues to improve its technologies.

“Another example of our continued innovation is the expansion of Honeywell’s [FMS] Guided Visual [approach] capability,” Owens told AIN, describing one recent example as the publication of the Aspen Runway 33 FMS Guided Visual procedure, which helps improve operational flexibility. “We now offer more than 110 Guided Visual procedures across 12 countries, with expansion planned into South America.”

Universal Avionics

Universal Avionics did not receive enough ratings for inclusion in this year’s AIN Product Support Survey—Avionics rankings.

The Tucson, Arizona-based avionics manufacturer has focused its product support improvements over the past year on expanding its digital presence and remote support capabilities, according to CEO Dror Yahav.

A new customer portal now centralizes database subscriptions, documentation, service bulletins, case tracking, and technical resources in one location, while a redesigned website offers improved search for STC offerings and dealer information, along with quick links to customer support and frequently asked questions.

Universal has also implemented HoloLens mixed-reality technology to provide remote technical support to field technicians. The system allows Universal’s engineers to see what a technician on an aircraft is seeing and walk them through procedures in real time, shortening troubleshooting and reducing the need for onsite visits, Yahav said.

On the data side, Universal has rolled out cloud-based applications including the UA FlightPartner tablet app, which connects to Wi-Fi to enable automated database updates and reporting through an iPad or web tools.

The company said this allows information to be analyzed across integrated systems, including its flight management systems, flight data recorders, and cockpit displays, streamlining previously manual workflows to support fleet management and proactive maintenance efforts.

Universal has also introduced AI tools in its manufacturing and repair operations. Yahav said an AI assistant trained on the company’s products and configurations allows an entry-level technician to accomplish work that would otherwise require three experienced technicians, analyzing components to flag potential issues and guide repair steps. This approach helps address technician shortages while speeding turnaround for customers, the company added.

Yahav said congested and increasingly complex airspace is the biggest challenge facing the industry today, along with the difficulty of making large volumes of data—particularly visual information—accessible and actionable for pilots.

He also agreed that supply-chain issues persist, particularly around component obsolescence and longer lead times for certain components, though the company has begun using AI tools to forecast demand and flag potential component shortages before they become critical.

Lufthansa Technik

Among aircraft CMS manufacturers, Lufthansa Technik led this year’s survey results with an overall score of 7.88, tallying top scores in half of the eight categories: cost-per-hour programs (7.68), parts availability (7.99), cost of parts (7.11), and warranty fulfillment (8.45).

“Over the past year, Lufthansa Technik has made significant investments to further enhance the support and value delivered to owners and operators of our Nice cabin management systems,” said Hinnerk Noelker, the company’s head of OEM engineering and operations.

A major focus for the German manufacturer over the past year has been the introduction of next-generation cabin systems in new business jet platforms, Noelker told AIN. In 2026, it launched its latest Nice IFE/CMS for the Embraer Praetor 500E and Praetor 600E, which incorporates advanced technologies such as a first-of-its-kind OLED display—a 42-inch curved touchscreen integrated directly into the sidewall. “With access to three external cameras, it’s able to function as a window to the outside via fully integrated IFE and CMS,” Noelker explained. “In addition, the Omni-Fi speakers (which earned a Red Dot Design Award) deliver a fully immersive sound experience for various installation positions to the cabin.” The manufacturer launched an IFE/CMS solution with OCD55 and 4K monitors, delivering higher system performance and improved user experience.

Beyond product innovation, it has substantially strengthened its ability to support customers through internal operational improvements, added Noelker. “This includes a notable increase in production capacity at Avionic Design, Lufthansa Technik’s wholly owned production subsidiary. At the same time, Lufthansa Technik has streamlined its production value chain, spanning manufacturing, acceptance testing and certification, and logistic processes.

“One of the biggest challenges is balancing passengers’ high expectations for cutting--edge cabin innovation with the rapidly shrinking life cycles of chips and semiconductors, which makes obsolescence management a constant battle,” Noelker explained. “This hurdle is heavily compounded by ongoing availability and delivery issues across the global electronics supply chain.”

To tackle this, Lufthansa Technik is actively designing highly flexible, future-proof system architectures that allow for easier component substitution. Additionally, it reactivated well-proven instruments from the semiconductor crisis two years ago, focusing on proactive “just-in-case” procurement strategies in order to ensure a reliable material supply chain.

Gulfstream Aerospace

While the Savannah, Georgia-based company led the category last year with a score of 7.98, Gulfstream Aerospace’s score in this year’s survey declined slightly (7.78), allowing Lufthansa Technik and Collins Aerospace to edge ahead.

“We continue to explore opportunities and advanced technologies to enhance and expand on the Gulfstream Cabin Management System,” said Lor Izzard, the airframer’s senior v-p for customer support.

Introduced in 2012, the Gulfstream-designed system streamlines cabin control options. “Developed with our customers in mind, the system integrates modern technology, advanced components, and intuitive controls to provide added convenience,” he added.

While the General Dynamics subsidiary earned the top scores for AOG response (8.13) category, and for its technical representatives (8.67), it was downgraded for cost of parts, receiving the lowest score (6.68) among the cabin management system manufacturers in this year’s survey. As well, AIN’s readers suggested the company could improve on its overall CMS reliability, giving it a score of 7.71, also trailing the others in the category.

“Connectivity remains an increasingly important part of the overall aircraft ownership experience, and Gulfstream is committed to ensuring our customers are equipped with the advanced options available, both today and in the years ahead,” Izzard told AIN. “This past year, we prioritized a customer-first and collaborative approach to delivering custom solutions. These efforts helped support each operator’s unique needs while ensuring a seamless in-flight experience.”

As part of those efforts, over the past year, Gulfstream earned additional supplemental type certifications for Starlink installations, and its team has completed more than 350 of them to date.

“In response to the strong customer demand we’ve seen for this service, we also added hangar space at our Mesa service center exclusively dedicated to Starlink,” Izzard said.

With a dedicated team and tools, that added focus is expected to reduce installation time and increase this service availability for its operators.

Starlink

With SpaceX’s Starlink low-Earth-orbit satcom system growing in popularity, the company appears for the first time in the AIN Product Support Survey rankings, scoring an 8.40 overall average and tallying the highest overall reliability of any of the OEMs in this survey at 9.34.

Starlink burst onto the aviation scene rapidly, spurred by business jet owners who have Starlink at home or at the office and have urged their flight department managers to get the system installed on their airplanes.

When Starlink for aviation was first introduced at the October 2022 NBAA-BACE, before any supplemental type certificates (STCs) had been approved for installations, the system price was quoted as $150,000 (plus about $150,000 to $200,000 for installation). Service plans were to be $12,500 to $25,000 per month, and those costs apparently didn’t scare anyone away.

Since then, the number of Starlink dealers, STCs, and installations has skyrocketed, offering hefty competition to other airborne connectivity providers. That SpaceX lowered those projected prices to $2,000 per month for 20 GB and $10,000 for unlimited further shook up the industry, especially considering some satcom services were typically billing customers tens of thousands per month.

More recently, SpaceX revised those service plan numbers and, in July of this year, told Starlink Aviation customers that the $10,000 unlimited plan was doubling to $20,000 per month, for global unlimited service starting on August 7. A new “single continental region” plan costs $12,500 per month for unlimited service, and it can be used only in the designated region.

The former $2,000/month plan now costs $4,000 per month and includes 25 GB, with additional data costing $250 per GB, and it is limited to a single continental region.

Gogo (including Satcom Direct)

Gogo has solidified its position as a provider of multiple airborne connectivity systems, from its foundation as an air-to-ground (ATG) developer to high-orbit satcom with its PlaneSimple antenna systems and launching the Galileo satcom service on Eutelsat’s low-Earth-orbit network. This gives customers more choices when it comes to the most cost-effective system that matches where they fly, and also a competitive advantage compared to companies with only a single solution.

In AIN’s 2026 Product Support Survey, Gogo—which includes Satcom Direct following the acquisition in 2024—scored an overall average of 8.14, down nearly three-tenths of a point from its 2025 score.

Where Gogo shined in the ratings was for technical reps, matching Collins’ 9.01, an indication of the importance AIN readers attach to personal support from people who are quickly available by telephone or in person. Gogo’s lower score for overall reliability may be a reflection of the upcoming end of classic ATG and that system’s lack of performance compared to more modern products.

To meet customer needs, over the past year Gogo has focused on expanding its support network and the dealers that install and maintain Gogo products. This includes new dealers in India, according to Gogo’s Christensen, reflecting Gogo’s work to make technical expertise and support available locally, “reducing downtime and improving the overall ownership experience,” he explained.

Now that Gogo is offering Galileo satcom and its newest ATG products, upgrades for many more aircraft are available, including for smaller airplanes—such as Pilatus PC-12s, Cessna Citations, and Embraer Phenom 300s—to be fitted with Galileo systems. Common hardware designs are also helping customers future-proof their investments—for example, enabling use of the same router for all of the available Gogo connectivity systems. Aircraft equipped with Avance ATG systems can also take advantage of commonality opportunities.

When it comes to the supply-chain issues that still affect aviation, Gogo “has consistently taken a proactive approach to supply chain management,” according to Christensen. “By planning well in advance and maintaining inventory, we have been able to minimize or remove lead times and ensure products remain readily available for our customers.

“We remain well-positioned to meet customer demand through pre-provisioned inventory, streamlined logistics, and strong supplier relationships.”

Viasat

Viasat, which did not receive enough user responses to be ranked last year, received an overall average score of 7.67 from AIN’s readers in this year’s survey, although still not enough ratings in some categories. It spent the past year adding network capacity behind its business aviation connectivity service and working through a trio of resellers to support operators in the field.

“Ensuring customers receive exceptional support throughout the entire life cycle of their connectivity service remains a key focus for Viasat,” said Jim MacDougall, head of product management for business aviation. Over the past year, he said, the company invested in its products and in “the support ecosystem that helps customers maximize the value of those services,” while building out its ViaSat-3 constellation. The third and final satellite in that constellation launched in April and is due to enter service later this year. Viasat said the constellation will unlock up to 2 Tbps of additional network capacity.

Product work has centered on JetXP, the brand under which Viasat consolidated its business aviation connectivity offerings. MacDougall said enhancements introduced over the past year target performance, reliability, and the passenger experience, backed by network investments intended to keep pace with rising demand.

Support is delivered by Viasat together with its value-added resellers in business aviation—Honeywell Aerospace, Gogo, and Collins Aerospace—which assist customers “from installation and entry into service to ongoing technical assistance and operational support,” MacDougall said. Between them, they provide around-the-clock coverage for operators worldwide. “We believe that direct access to knowledgeable support teams remains essential to delivering the high level of service our customers expect,” he added.

The company has also announced an In-flight Quality of Experience (iQe) initiative that will weigh a broader set of performance indicators than speed alone. The iQe program “will use AI and advanced analytics to provide deeper insight into how passengers are actually experiencing connectivity onboard,” MacDougall said, letting Viasat and its resellers spot patterns and intervene before an operator notices a problem. From 2027, the company plans to use iQe as the basis for measuring performance commitments under its service-level agreements. Viasat is separately examining how AI could speed troubleshooting of airborne equipment.

Human support remains central, MacDougall told AIN, because “business aviation is a highly personalized industry, and customers expect direct access to experienced support teams when they need assistance.” Viasat’s technical reps earned the company its highest category score (8.51) this year.

Viasat pointed to evolving customer expectations, and the difficulty of meeting them consistently worldwide, as one of the industry’s biggest challenges. In recent company research, business aviation principals and industry professionals identified reliability, coverage, and consistency as the most important attributes of an in-flight connectivity service, with reliability ranking ahead of speed. MacDougall said that operators and passengers will increasingly judge providers “not by peak speed claims, but by the overall quality and consistency of the experience they deliver.”

—AIN staff contributed to this report.