The agreement builds on an existing AsiaSat 5 capacity lease that Panasonic signed in September 2011. Panasonic said the new capacity aims to ensure the best possible in-flight connectivity service for aircraft flying routes over the Middle East and India.

“The Middle East and India are two extremely strategic markets for Panasonic and our Global Communications Service, and we are very excited to have secured even more transponder space on AsiaSat 5,” Panasonic Avionics Global Communications Service Vice President David Bruner said in a statement. “As we continue to equip more and more aircraft that fly routes over these key, very high traffic markets, we will add the capacity and coverage necessary to ensure the industry’s highest bandwidth at the lowest possible price.” 

Panasonic’s Global Communications Service includes eXPhone, eXTV and eXConnect, which provide two-way broadband connectivity supporting Internet access, voice, data, and the ability to monitor and transmit airline operational data in real time at speeds of up to 50 Mbps to the aircraft.