Abstract
Airborne Internet Consortium concept
Need
The need for an Airborne Internet Consortium (AIC) is based on the lack of a common organization
for the aviation industry to leverage commercial Internet technologies. The advent of new digital communication
and processing technologies is radically changing the way commercial businesses and social communications
are being conducted. It would appear that aviation is the last industrial segment to embrace the latest
digital and Internet technologies.
Purpose
The purpose of the AIC is to accelerate the rate of adoption and absorption of digital and Internet technologies into
aviation. The AIC will provide the necessary research, certification and guidance methodologies, advocacy, and influence
in order to create the necessary technologies, policies, and regulations required for the use of commercial Internet
protocols in aviation.
Benefits
With the availability of Internet technologies to all sectors of aviation from commercial to general aviation, from the flight deck
to the cabin, and from flight-related tasks to entertainment, dramatic increases in communication and transportation
mobility will be achieved. Internet protocols and services will make aircraft easier to fly with more
situational awareness, safety, and security. Also, the productivity of passengers will be
increased because the growth in connectivity will allow people in transit to use otherwise unproductive time.
Once this increased communication and transportation mobility is implemented, new markets will be created and established
markets will expand at accelerated rates—which will increase investments in economic development and create jobs.
Scalability
To encourage the creation and growth of markets, the Airborne Internet Consortium must identify and develop technologies that
will scale. The commercial Internet’s success has not only been due to its ability to increase communication mobility, it has also
occured because of its ability to scale exponentially. The Internet has been able to meet the demands placed on it
by not having a fixed network topology or architecture. For this reason, part of the AIC effort will include
modern network theory and principles so that the
Airborne Internet
will retain the resilience of the commercial Internet and not fail to scale to events such as extraordinary traffic volume,
disruptive weather, or exponentional increases in user volume.
JPDO Partnership
The power of future networked system architectures to transform aviation will enable scalable airspace
and aircraft architectures, flexible ground infrastructures, and new approaches to safety and security in the system of
systems known as Aviation. To insure that the Airborne Internet Consortium is aware of network theory developments
in aviation, the AIC will maintain a close working relationship with the
Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO)
 .
Join
If you are interested in becoming a member of the Airborne Internet Consortium, please see information on
how to join.
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