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BUSINESS AVIATION 16 AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2016 AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGY Q That must present a challenge to an OEM, a manufacturer such as you? Yes. We look for different ways to support customers using things like remote logins or having them to share the login files so we can steer them to a solu- tion. Training is also important. Satcom Direct offers an Aero IT Program where maintenance technicians are trained and certified. I would recommend this to anyone who's working on large business jets like Gulfstreams or Challengers. Networking skills are essential. The technician of the future needs to be part mechanic and part IT professional. Q What are the challenges involved in installing and properly maintaining aircra connectivity systems and what are the cost drivers for maintenance? The good news is that the systems are reliable. Technology has evolved and people are offering one- box solutions. So while it's still a complex system, they only have to deal with one box, and swapping it out may fix the problem. Q Does the complexity also drive cost of maintenance? Possibly. The first time you go through something like this it can be expensive because people are learning as they go. Sometimes things aren't broken, they are just misconfigured. Maybe they left out a digit in the Wi-Fi password or put a zero instead of an O. Those types of small things can cause big problems, and if a technician has to spend a few hours to figure that out it can cost the customer a lot of money. Q These technologies and products are changing so rapidly. How are we as an industry dealing with the technical and obsolescence challenges that this pres- ents, and what can maintenance profes- sionals do to keep up? Owners and operators are understandably frustrated about obsolescence. We all have a drawer full of old phone cables, and just like those phone cables become obsolete, now your $60 million business jet has become obsolete. When your new iPhone doesn't work you're thinking that something's wrong with your aircraft. We often hear from directors of main- tenance for Fortune 50 companies who are worried about a new phone release. They know that their CEO or CTO is going to have one and be on the plane the next day trying to use it. We have a support program to help customers stay ahead of that and believe we should be the guys staying up at night worrying about this issue, not you. Q So what does the future hold for connected aircra and what can maintainers expect to be the next big thing? They can expect more connectivity. Today we can't imagine the world without the internet. That's exactly what's going to happen with connectivity and air- planes. It's going to be as commonplace as GPS. Everything that flies will have some sort of con- nectivity option. That's how the UAVs are going to work within controlled airspace. That's how Amazon's going to deliver packages, and Google's going to do all the things they want to do. There is just no question that the next big thing in aviation is going to be driven by connectivity. Q So it's happening and we need to be ready? Everyone in the industry, including maintainers, needs to become smarter about connected aircraft. Maintainers are going to maintain aircraft differently because of connectivity. Pilots are going to fly air- planes differently because of connectivity. And pas- sengers are going to expect different things because of connectivity. It's completely changing the entire industry. So you either have to get on board or get out of the way. TrueNorth designs and builds the technology that powers the connected aircraft cabin and flight deck, tackling the rapidly changing landscape of mobile devices today and tomorrow. Fortune 100 business jet operators trust the company's inflight communica- tions systems, and leading avionics manufacturers rely on TrueNorth for their own connectivity systems. Effortless connectivity for smart phones and other mobile devices, and flexible, upgradable systems empower passengers, crew and maintainers. For more information visit truenorth.aero. The technician of the future needs to be part mechanic and part IT professional. There is just no question that the next big thing in aviation is going to be driven by connectivity.