South African Airways is set to become the first airline to verify in-flight card transactions in real-time following the installation of Satellite Authorisation Systems communication system…
SAA Live Installation
SatAuth installs innovative communications infrastructure on SAA’s live aircraft, facilitating the in-flight testing of the solution in real-time.
Following the successful installation of the SatAuth system on SAA’s Cabin trainer, Satellite Authorisation Systems (SatAuth) with the assistance of SAA has successfully installed its unique communication solution on board the first commercial aeroplane, ZS-SLF.
According to SAA Technical representative Helmut Kolar, who has been with SAA for over 30 years,
“SatAuth is unique in that it is the first locally designed South African product with an EASA approved Supplementary Technical Certificate (STC), which has successfully been installed on an SAA aircraft”
This installation now paves the way for the in-flight verification of the communications infrastructure, which is the pre-cursor for the solution to be made commercially available to the aviation industry.
The success of the technical implementation of the SatAuth infrastructure has been confirmed following the return flight of ZS-SLF between O.R. Tambo International Airport and London (UK).
Paul Roux (SatAuth) confirmed that the SatAuth project is ”a true ground breaker as new procedures and testing criteria, post the formal certification, are being drafted and executed. Without any precedents, we are finding solutions to ensuring that any identified processes are complied with, while exploring new boundaries in order to complete the validation of the solution within the SAA corporate framework.”
The installation onto a commercial airliner facilitates the completion of the proof-of-concept testing as identified by SatAuth in both the local and the international environments. The testing will prove the efficacy of the communications solution, and facilitate the launch of the SatAuth product onto the global aviation market. This process makes an innovative South African product available to the international Duty-Free Retail space, which has been desperately seeking a real-time solution that would remove the financial risk of doing business in the air.
– Johannesburg, South Africa, June 10, 2014
Groundbreaking Installation
SatAuth installs innovative communications infrastructure on SAA’s cabin trainer, paving the way for SAA to become the first user of secure real-time e-commerce facilities in the aviation industry.
Satellite Authorisation Systems (SatAuth) with the assistance of SAA has successfully installed its unique communication solution on board SAA’s Cabin trainer. This is anticipated to be a giant step towards providing real-time authentication for on-board sales – addressing the ongoing risk of doing business in-flight, and achieving a major milestone of a project which has been in the making for over 13 years.
According to SatAuth founder and CEO Paul Roux, the SatAuth solution has been designed to take the risk out of commercial trading in-flight, by providing a secure solution to the risk associated with doing business in this environment.
SatAuth will be providing an economical and secure transaction environment, thereby expanding the marketing potential to a captive audience, as opposed to on-board in-flight communications like e-mail, SMS’s and to a lesser degree web surfing.
View more image of our SatAuth installation in SAA’s Cabin trainer here
SatAuth further distinguishes itself from its global competitors, by providing a cost-effective installation, without compromising aircraft flight schedules or passenger space.
As a truly South African innovation, the solution would not have reached this milestone without the dedicated support of the SAA Avionics engineers. They assisted us in guiding the SatAuth Solution through the numerous certification requirements for the aviation industry.
Paul Roux envisages that SAA Technical will be the manufacturers of the major aircraft components in accordance with international Aviation Certification standards required for the installation, providing a unique opportunity for SAA’s technical team.
The Aerospace Industry Support Initiative (AISI), an initiative of the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti), hosted and managed by the CSIR, is providing grant support to SatAuth to complete its final testing phases. This final phase will enable the migration from proof-of-concept to global commercialization, which is in line with the AISI’s goal of industrialisation of technology.
Installation of the SatAuth solution onto a commercial aircraft, and the completion of in-flight testing to further verify the effectiveness of the solution, is the next milestone in this proudly South African project.
– Johannesburg, South Africa, May 26, 2014