Proof

Double click this video to enlarge this live demo of a 45 Mbps data rate. This test shows the transfer of data in TCP format similar to an Internet connection. The Wi-SKY radio in flight transferred 396 Megabytes (a 1-hour movie) in 100 seconds.

Regarding the above screen capture video, please note the following elements:

• The path of the plane is being tracked using MS Map Point with GPS
• The location is along I-5 near Modesto, California (The base station is in Mountain View, California – 54 miles away)
• The speed of the plane is 493 miles per hour
• The longitude and latitude position of the plane change as the plane flies
• The test being shown is called an IPERF, which tests the actual bandwidth available on the data circuit
• The IPERF sends as much data as possible each second, between the transmitter and receiver
• The IPERF displays how much data was sent each second, and calculates the corresponding Mbps

Additional Examples

Current technology utilizes, at best, 3 Mbps of limited bandwidth. Below are significant examples of difficulties encountered during flight with the narrow bandwidth on aircraft today.

• 30-second iTunes preview takes 90 seconds to play due to multiple interruptions to load the data
• Download of a single MP3 song takes as long as 30 minutes while in flight
• HD movie trailer buffers data for 94 seconds, then plays for 6 seconds, and then begins to download content again
• Large content web sites (e.g., online poker) take 30 to 45 minutes to download
• Data rates are sometimes as low as 3 Kbps when downloading large-volume content from the Internet in flight

The three video screen captures below show the difference speed makes in performing high-volume data loading with the Wi-SKY true broadband speed.

Screen capture of an IPERF test showing data transfer in TCP format.

Although we demonstrated a data rate of 30 Mbps to 45 Mbps using an IPERF test, the connection between the base station radio and the Internet was limited by the service provider to less than 8 Mbps. The video below shows a speed test being performed to test the connection between the base station and the Internet (called “backhaul”).

The screen capture video below shows Saturday Night Live on TV viewed from the Wi-SKY data connection in flight. Note there is no delay for content buffering in this video. A high data rate delivers consistent, smooth multi-media viewing from the Internet during flight.