In-flight connectivity via LEO constellations: Simulation steps

Below is a video showing the simulation steps driving the analysis described in the recent article about #Starlink's in-flight connectivity (IFC) capabilities- ?"SpaceX-RAYing In-Flight Wi-Fi via Starlink"

I did not screen-record the Starlink-Qatar Airways case, but the video is for another major airline (KLM) showing the NCAT4 tool used and steps taken:

In-flight connectivity mobility tool example: Amazon Project Kuiper servicing KLM flights

Screen-recoding of (future) Amazon Project Kuiper LEO broadband servicing mobility markets. Simulation assumes a single Kuiper shell with gateway stations installed at AWS Availability-Zone data centers (unconfirmed for Kuiper).

The simulation was run for KLM Royal Dutch Airlines flights on October 5th, 2023.

The simulation was run in two steps: 1. Global /regional; and 2. Country specific. Bandwidth demand combined the capacity demand of KLM flights with fixed broadband terminals.

Settings:

#Satcom constellation

• Amazon Kuiper 51.9 deg, 630 km altitude (1,156 satellites)

Fixed broadband

• Service plan: 62/12 Mbps; 40-to-1 overbooking
• Target: 1% in cells with a population density between 10 and 300 people per sq.km

IFC: KLM flights; all airports /destinations

Step 1: Global & Europe (flex-grid)

• Service plan: 50/5 Mbps; 5-to-1 overbooking

Step 2: Netherlands (hi-res country grid)

• Service Plan: 115/60 Mbps; no overbooking.

I hope this video is useful. NCAT makes it easy to run simulations on any satellite constellation (operational or planned), airline and country /region.

More toolkit demo videos on YouTube