• The Alliance announces industry-backed metrics for monitoring the inflight connectivity experience – giving airlines a jumpstart in supplier conversations and RFPs

Fremont, California. 25 May 2022. The Seamless Air Alliance, which continues to lead the development and implementation of Global Standards for Inflight Connectivity, today launched an Inflight Connectivity (IFC) Analysis Toolkit to help airlines adopt vetted, trusted metrics for measuring and comparing IFC Service Quality in RFPs and performance management conversations.

The IFC Analysis Toolkit provides a clear set of features and measurements to recognize and manage IFC Service Quality. Included in the toolkit are a suite of easy-to-use documents and a comprehensive Compliance Criteria Matrix that can be used by an airline to simplify the process of assembling an RFP, comparing responses, and opening discussions with both current and prospective suppliers.

Gordon Shelhon, Senior Technology Manager at American Airlines said, “The industry as a whole is making a huge leap forward by adopting the compliance criteria metrics defined in the Seamless Air Alliance IFC Analysis Toolkit. As a network engineer with decades of experience in wireless technology, I remember when connectivity at 500+ MPH was first introduced. At the time, connectivity was a new concept and airlines deployed these systems with little insight into the customer experience. SLA’s were limited to measurements for availability that only required a simple ping, which didn’t give the airline or supplier any insight into the customer experience. With the introduction of the Seamless Air Alliance IFC Analysis Toolkit, airlines adopting these standards will be better positioned to develop meaningful SLA’s with a focus on customer experience and metrics that truly reflect that experience.”

Commenting on the launch, Jack Mandala, Seamless Air Alliance Chief Executive Officer said that “Airlines looking for a new connectivity system can use the IFC Analysis Toolkit as a basis for building RFP criteria and comparing suppliers during the process. Airlines with existing providers, can use the toolkit to better understand the experience that passengers are having with their inflight connectivity system by ensuring they are tracking the right metrics. In both scenarios the winner is the airline passenger.”

The standardized measurements provided in the IFC Analysis Toolkit were built from the ground up based on years of knowledge and experience from airlines and experts across the industry. The Seamless Air Alliance believes that tracking these measures helps provide a true picture of the passengers’ experience that is otherwise lost in aggregate metrics.

The IFC Analysis Toolkit is available for no-charge to current Seamless Air Alliance Members and is available for purchase to non-members. Airlines that are not currently Seamless Air Alliance Members can join for free and gain access to the IFC Toolkit.