As Telesat starts deploying physical infrastructure for its Lightspeed LEO satellite network, Airbus reveals it is fielding interest for its linefit, supplier-furnished HBCplus flex inflight connectivity solution which can support geostationary satcom and Lightspeed LEO. Last month, Telesat commissioned its first European gateway for Lightspeed in the French community of Bercenay-en-Othe. The Canadian satellite operator in December will launch two pathfinder satellites on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, followed by a cadence of satellite launches in 2027 to offer global coverage, including over the poles, in Q1 2028. “The HBCplus flex antenna — our current antenna offer — is the first GEO/LEO integrated solution and is currently generating interest among customers,” Airbus told Runway Girl Network after management highlighted how GEO and LEO connectivity are complementary during a media briefing to discuss the airframer’s Global Services Forecast (GCF). That’s good news for Hughes Network Systems, a managed service provider in the Ka-band under the HBCplus program, as well as TCI Aircraft Interiors, which has inked an MoU with Airbus to become an MSP. Each firm has a roadmap for providing access to Lightspeed LEO as part of their multi-orbit service offerings (and both are partners in the aftermarket.) SES is also an MSP on the HBCplus program. Today, it powers IFC for HBCplus customers via Open Orbits, its hybrid Ka-band network which comprises GEO and O3b mPOWER Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellites. “The capabilities recorded are very good, with a bandwidth of around 300 Mbps, making it a top-ranking solution among the antennas available on the market today,” Airbus says of the current GEO/MEO-powered IFC service now flying. But given that the same HBCplus flex terminal can facilitate Lightspeed LEO when the service comes online, and indeed can ably support the gigabit-per-second link speeds that Lightspeed will enable, some industry observers wonder whether SES will in time ink a Lightspeed capacity deal with Telesat. runwaygirlnetwork.com/2026/1…

Safran has announced plans to divest its Safran Cabin unit, which provides overhead bins, galleys, lavatories, water and waste management solutions, and other aircraft cabin interiors to the civil aviation market. Against a backdrop that saw Safran Cabin achieve “notable growth” in the third quarter in the Middle East, Europe and the Americas, “[W]e launched the process to divest our Cabin business a few weeks ago,” Safran Group CEO Pascal Bantegnie revealed during the firm’s Q3 earnings conference call. “For your reference, Cabin now generates around EUR 2 billion in revenue per year and is delivering positive EBIT and free cash flow,” he said. The decision is not surprising. Since acquiring Zodiac Aerospace in 2018, the French aerospace giant has been studying – and indeed executing on – the divestiture of non-core interiors activities. Eight months ago, Safran sold its inflight entertainment business, Safran Passenger Innovations, to Los Angeles-based private equity firm Kingswood Capital Management. The business was renamed RAVE Aerospace. In July, Safran sold its shares of EZAir, its interiors joint venture with Embraer, to the Brazilian airframer. Aircraft seats remain core to Safran’s business, however, with Bantegnie pointing to Q3 growth in both services and business class original equipment, “boosted by higher volumes and improved pricing.” “The market for seats,” he said, “still exceeds available supply, which puts us in a strong position to negotiate favorable terms.” runwaygirlnetwork.com/2026/1…

HOUSTON — United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby has a lofty goal: “to build the best airline in the history of aviation.” And today, as he welcomed guests to a preview of the new Terminal B North Concourse at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport, and the massive new United Club housed within, he didn’t mince words about how United will make good on this vision. “We’re maniacally focused on making air travel great for customers, making it easy,” Kirby told United employees, high-status loyalty members, local dignitaries, and members of the media who attended the event. “And for so long in aviation, people thought of air travel as a commodity. I do not think air travel is a commodity. I think we owe you, our customers, a good experience,” he declared, while flanked by a dazzling digital light installation, The Digital Bayou, at the heart of the new concourse. United’s work to offer a world-class inflight passenger experience is well documented: it is installing Panasonic seatback IFE screens across its mainline fleet, complementing its already-fitted widebodies; going fleet-wide with SpaceX’s Starlink Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satcom solution to power free Wi-Fi for loyalty members (more than 640 aircraft are equipped); and it’s even integrating Starlink with the screens to offer deeper personalization. The airline’s new Polaris and Polaris Studio doored mini-suites are also winning passenger accolades, and business traveler awards. But Kirby wants to go further. “I want your vacation to start when you arrive at your departure airport,” he said today at IAH, which serves as a key United hub and premier gateway for Latin America and Caribbean traffic. To that end, as part of a 33-month project to replace the 1969-era Terminal B, IAH’s new Terminal B North Concourse has been thoughtfully designed for the modern traveler. The on-the-ground experience represents a key passenger touchpoint, and an opportunity for United to set a good impression before a traveler steps on board. And that’s where the mammoth new United Club at Terminal B North Concourse comes in. They say that everything is bigger in Texas. And this space definitely fits the bill. Roughly the size of a football field, the 54,000 sq ft facility is the largest airline club in the Americas, and features multiple distinct zones. Here's a first look inside both the concourse and the new United Club. runwaygirlnetwork.com/2026/1…

As airframers pursue aggressive aircraft production rates, Diehl Aviation is implementing a cluster of measures to make its supply chain more resilient and ensure it is prepared for the ramp up. The nose-to-tail Tier 1 supplier and integrator is broadening its sourcing strategies by adopting “multiple sources” for select key components as well as common standards. It is also tightening coordination with suppliers under a so-called T.R.U.S.T. initiative, which sees both sides identify supply-chain risks and improvement opportunities, and put them into practice. “The objective is to identify potential supply risks at an early stage, secure critical capacities and materials, and improve delivery performance across the supply chain,” says the Laupheim, Germany-headquartered firm, whose portfolio encompasses passenger-facing solutions like aircraft lavatories, overhead bins, cabin lining and LED lighting as well as underlying systems for water, ducting, and air management. In turn, it aims to create “greater transparency and predictability” throughout the industrial network. Last week, during a media briefing to discuss Airbus’ 2026 Global Services Forecast, Airbus executives highlighted the fragility of the supply chain and said bottlenecks are still prevalent. Coupled with “tensions around geopolitics,” this is causing “logistic flows disruptions” and impacting airline customers, the European airframer said. The issue is especially critical given that aircraft production rates at Airbus, and indeed across major OEMs, continue to increase. runwaygirlnetwork.com/2026/1…

For a company that only launched in January, Kirkland, Washington-based Skyband Systems is enjoying a remarkable trajectory in aviation, and is already poised to bring Iridium PNT into the cockpit. Its M100 avionics unit, which keeps aircraft navigating when GPS and global navigation satellite system (GNSS) signals are disrupted or in question, has entered into production, and management is targeting U.S. FAA supplemental type certification (STC) on the prototype aircraft — an Embraer Praetor 600 — by as early as November. A line replaceable unit, the M100 fuses independent onboard inertial sensing with Iridium’s positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) ASIC chip, which receives a cryptographically protected signal from Iridium’s 66-satellite Low Earth Orbit (LEO constellation. Connecting to the aircraft’s existing Iridium antenna, the system delivers its output to the flight deck through an electronic flight bag (EFB) application and cockpit annunciator. This provides pilots with real-time GPS alerts and supplementary situational awareness. “As GPS interference has grown into a daily concern for flight crews, Iridium PNT offers a signal that is resilient against jamming and spoofing. Skyband’s M100 brings that capability into the cockpit, and we are excited to see it reach production,” says Iridium CEO Matt Desch. Bringing a brand new system to civil aviation at this pace is no small thing. But Skyband, whose leadership team comprises former Starlink Aviation engineers and executives, already knows the market. It’s also working with a highly respected FAA ODA, AeroMech, based in nearby Mukilteo. Skyband is clearly cooking with gas. And so, RGN put the question to Skyband co-founder and president Robert Wiggenhorn: if the likes of Honeywell or Collins reached out to you guys and said, “We’d just like to snatch you up right now,” are you open to those types of conversations? Full story: runwaygirlnetwork.com/2026/1…