As of 31 December 2018, modifications to protect against de-icing fluid contamination on Gogo’s 2Ku North American aircraft have yielded positive results, with no further costs incurred during Q4 2018.
As of year-end 2018, Gogo says it had experienced no incidents of 2Ku system degradation on aircraft with Gogo’s recent de-icing modifications. Based on Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) data listing airports that have experienced de-icing activity, Gogo estimates that in 2018, aircraft with Gogo de-icing modifications flew more than 5,000 flights that had been de-iced.
De-icing modifications had been installed on more than 675 aircraft by the end of 2018, representing almost 97% of the installed North American fleet. While the vast majority of global de-icing activities occur in North America, Gogo will modify existing 2Ku installations on international aircraft as part of each airline’s maintenance program. All newly equipped 2Ku aircraft globally will include the de-icing modifications at the time of installation if requested by the airline.
Availability across the entire Gogo 2Ku fleet was approximately 98% for the month of December, which compares to approximately 90% for the same period last winter.
“On 11 December 2018, we announced zero incidents of 2Ku degradation on aircraft installed with Gogo’s recent de-icing modifications and we are pleased to announce that this success extended through the end of 2018,” said John Wade, president of Gogo’s Commercial Aviation division.
The copany cautions it may not have experienced all potential weather and de-icing conditions to date.
