Honeywell and Inmarsat have signed an exclusive agreement to provide global in-flight connectivity services to business, commercial, and government aviation customers around the world.

Global Xpress is scheduled for launch in 2013, with global service for commercial, business aviation, and government customers available in 2014.

By combining Honeywell’s satellite communication capabilities with Inmarsat’s Global Xpress connectivity, travelers will be able to do everything from real-time social media, to video conferencing and multi-media presentation development while in-flight virtually anywhere in the world, with an experience similar to being at home or in the office.

Passengers will have fast, reliable in-flight connectivity for their iPads, smartphones, tablet devices, and laptops while crossing oceans.

By the year 2016, it is estimated there will be 10 billion mobile devices in the world, and a global population of approximately 7.3 billion people. Demand for data traffic is expected to grow by a factor of 50 for smartphones and a factor of 62 for tablets.

By 2016, it is estimated, 71 percent of all mobile traffic will be used for watching videos. With the roll-out of the Global Xpress network, Honeywell is in a leading position to deliver airborne connectivity solution to this rapidly expanding market.

Global Xpress Transforms Consumer and Business Traveler ConnectivityGlobal Xpress will operate in the Ka-band, with four times the bandwidth available compared to alternative solutions in Ku-band. This expanded spectrum resource, delivered via spot beam technology, will enable Global Xpress to outperform Ku-band based services in both speed and cost.