Airborne Satcom Market Report

Market Insights

"The airborne SATCOM market was US$ 5.7 Billion in 2023 and is likely to grow at a decent CAGR of 6.5% in the long run to reach US$ 8.8 Billion in 2030."

Market Dynamics

Introduction

The Airborne SATCOM (Satellite Communication) Market concerns the industry that offers satellite communication systems and services to airborne systems and platforms, including commercial and military aircraft, UAVs, helicopters, and other airborne assets. These systems allow secure and reliable immediate interaction with other airborne platforms and stations, the ground, or other satellites. The market can be a broad one that includes several elements of computer hardware, computing software, and services that can be used by multiple end-user industries.

The Airborne SATCOM Market serves an important requirement for current aviation communication purposes and will experience vast developments with the developments in satellite technologies and the elevation of unmanned aerial vehicle usage in various sectors.

Market Segments' Analysis

By Platform Type

“Narrow Body Aircraft is expected to dominate”.

• High Fleet Numbers and Growth: As will be shown later, narrow-body aircraft are dominant in the global commercial aircraft fleet invention due to these qualities. They are best suited for short to middle – distance flights, which make up a large segment of the traffic demand on the global market. SATCOM growth is growing at a higher rate in new markets, particularly in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East due to the fast-growing fleet expansion.
• Increasing Demand for In-Flight Connectivity (IFC): As passenger expectations increase, particularly on internet usage and entertainment during a flight. It is for this reason that airlines prioritize the SATCOM system to improve customer accommodation and offer services such as internet connection, streaming, and messaging in real time. Narrow bodies as defined above make up a relatively vast portion of domestic and regional transport where passenger connectivity is increasingly becoming a norm.
• Cost Efficiency and Technological Advances: Narrow-body aviation SATCOM equipment has been coming down in price due to an increase in technological elements like compact antennas and HTS. This is because SATCOM on the one hand, has fewer operational costs when used in narrow-body airplanes than the otherwise wide-body ones.

By Component Type

“SATCOM Terminals is expected to dominate among the various forms”.

• Central Role in SATCOM Systems: SATCOM terminal/antennas also work as a medium of transmitting signal/data between airborne platforms and satellites. They are used for data transmission and reception in the SATCOM network and are thus indispensable. These terminals incorporate important subsystems including antennas, modems, and transceivers which afford them a central position in the SATCOM system.
• Wide Range of Applications: SATCOM terminals are deployed in civil and defense environments, that include communication, entertainment, and connectivity for passengers on board aircraft as well as tactical platform communication of military operations on the battlefield. The ability to support voice, video, and data communications in different platforms (commercial airplanes, UAVs, military aircraft) also increases their sales.
• High-Cost Contribution: The SATCOM terminals are among the costliest parts of the system owning to the aspects of their nature and incorporation of modern technologies. Even though AESAs are parts of the systems, their high cost compared to the other parts such as modems, radomes, transceivers, etc., make them dominant revenue earners.

By Application Type

“Government & Defense is expected to dominate among the key segments.”

• High Dependency on SATCOM for Mission-Critical Applications: SATCOM is especially used in military procedures to perform secure, and highly dependable communication in operation theaters, surveillance, and real-time decision-making. Use cases including surveillance, reconnaissance, and UAV implementation call for unbroken connection, more often in areas that are difficult to reach or downright dangerous.
• Significant Defense Spending: Leaders across the world invest a lot of money to improve communication networks to boost national security. Acquisitions in modern SATCOM systems remain part of high-priority procurement for military aircraft, helicopters, and UAVs; in North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.
• Increasing UAV Usage: The advancement of UAVs for military use such as patrol and security, combat, and counter-terrorism has led to the need for SATCOM systems that enable BLOS communications. 4. Need for Secure Communication: SATCOM systems afford encrypted, and secure, links which are critical for governments and the defense force to avoid interference with their communication by hackers. This demand for secure communication explains why the Government & Defense sector is most dominant in the market

By Frequency Type

“Ku-Band is expected to dominate among the key segments”.

• Widely used for Commercial Aviation: Ku-Band is widely used in the IFC link in commercial aircraft because of both the bandwidth and the coverage requirement. It is especially well suited in aspects of passenger Wi-Fi, video streaming, and all other forms of broadband services in the commercial aviation business.
• Global Coverage and High Throughput: Enables dependable connectivity for worldwide flights, particularly on extensive ones, and offers fast-speed data transmission for onboard facilities.
• Established Infrastructure: Huge investment in ground infrastructure for Ku-Band SATCOM systems has made this system popular among many commercial operators and service providers

By Installation Type

“New Installation is dominant amongst another segment”.

• Fleet Expansion and New Aircraft Deliveries: With the development of more aircraft purchases and operations by airline and defense organizations there is a good demand for new SATCOM systems installations in newly procured aircraft. SATCOM becomes part of the aircraft standard equipment for new commercial aircraft, mainly narrow and wide-body models due to the increasing demand for IFC services and governmental and operational necessities such as real-time flight monitoring.
• Increased Demand for Connectivity: The satisfaction of connection requirements on planes, as well as military utilization that includes protected line technologies, helps to encourage SATCOM use in new production planes.
• Global Aviation Growth: The number of new aircraft coming into service each year through new market demand, especially in the Asia-Pacific region figures are trending higher and these aircraft are equipped with the youngest SATCOM technology

Regional Analysis

“The North American region is expected to dominate the market in the forecasted period”.

• Strong Military and Defense Spending: Being one of the key leaders in military technology, the United States has a considerably high demand for the latest SATCOM systems for its military and civil aviation – aircraft, UAVs, etc. Probably one of the most important applications of satellite communication systems is with the U.S. government, military, and intelligence agencies.
• Leading Commercial Aviation Market: The largest commercial aviation market is occupied by the United States, where such companies as American Airlines, Delta, and United Airlines buy SATCOM systems to improve communication services for passengers and crew members. SATCOM is also required in newly-delivered aircraft across the spectrum of narrow and wide-body aircraft categories with additional demand by North American airlines.

Early Adoption of In-Flight Connectivity (IFC): Speaking of?? the present and expected tendencies of in-flight connectivity North America is considered to be among the leaders, that invest in such technologies as HTS, Ka-Band, and Ku-Band. Various operations on missiles, entertainment, and general Internet usage are the prime reasons for implementing the SATCOM system in this part of the world.

Key Players

The market is highly fragmented with the presence of over 100 players across the region. Most of the major players compete in some of the governing factors including price, service offerings, regional presence, etc. The following are the key players in the Airborne SATCOM.

Here is the list of the Top Players (Based on Dominance)

• Thales Group
• General Dynamics Corporation
• Collins Aerospace
• Gilat Satellite Networks
• Raytheon Intelligence and Space

Note: The above list does not necessarily include all the top players of the market.

Are you the leading player in this market? We would love to include your name. Write to us at [email protected]

Report Features

This report provides market intelligence most comprehensively. The report structure has been kept such that it offers maximum business value. It provides critical insights into market dynamics and will enable strategic decision-making for existing market players as well as those willing to enter the market. The following are the key features of the report:

• Market structure: Overview, industry life cycle analysis, supply chain analysis.
• Market environment analysis: Growth drivers and constraints, Porter’s five forces analysis, SWOT analysis.
• Market trend and forecast analysis.
• Market segment trend and forecast.
• Competitive landscape and dynamics: Market share, Service portfolio, New Product Launches, etc.
• COVID-19 impact and its recovery curve.
• Attractive market segments and associated growth opportunities.
• Emerging trends.
• Strategic growth opportunities for the existing and new players.
• Key success factors.

The airborne SATCOM market is segmented into the following categories. 

Airborne SATCOM, by Platform Type

• Fixed Wing (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Commercial Aircraft (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Narrow Body Aircraft (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Wide Body Aircraft (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Regional Transport Aircraft (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Military Aircraft (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Business Aviation & General Aviation (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Rotary Wing (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)

Airborne SATCOM, by Component Type

• SATCOM Terminals (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Transceivers (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Airborne Radio (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Modems & Routers (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• SATCOM Radomes  (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Other Components (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)

Airborne SATCOM, by Application Type

• Government & Defense (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Commercial (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)

Airborne SATCOM, by Frequency Type

• VHF/UHF-Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• L- Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• S-Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• C- Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• X-Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Ku-Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Ka-Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• EHF/SHF- Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Multi-Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Q-Band (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)

Airborne SATCOM, by Installation Type

• New Installation (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Upgrade (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)

Airborne SATCOM, by Region

• North America (Country Analysis: The USA, Canada, and Mexico)
• Europe (Country Analysis: Germany, France, The UK, Russia, and Rest of Europe)
• Asia-Pacific (Country Analysis: Japan, China, India, and Rest of Asia-Pacific)
• Rest of the World (Country Analysis: Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Others)

Research Methodology

• This strategic assessment report from Stratview Research provides a comprehensive analysis that reflects today’s Airborne SATCOM realities and future market possibilities for the forecast period. 
• The report segments and analyzes the market in the most detailed manner in order to provide a panoramic view of the market.
• The vital data/information provided in the report can play a crucial role for market participants as well as investors in the identification of the low-hanging fruits available in the market as well as to formulate growth strategies to expedite their growth process.
• This report offers high-quality insights and is the outcome of a detailed research methodology comprising extensive secondary research, rigorous primary interviews with industry stakeholders, and validation and triangulation with Stratview Research’s internal database and statistical tools.
• More than 1,000 authenticated secondary sources, such as company annual reports, fact books, press releases, journals, investor presentations, white papers, patents, and articles, have been leveraged to gather the data.
• We conducted more than 15 detailed primary interviews with market players across the value chain in all four regions and industry experts to obtain both qualitative and quantitative insights.

Report Customization Options

With this detailed report, Stratview Research offers one of the following free customization options to our respectable clients:

Company Profiling

• Detailed profiling of additional market players (up to three players)
• SWOT analysis of key players (up to three players)

Competitive Benchmarking

• Benchmarking of key players on the following parameters: Service portfolio, geographical reach, regional presence, and strategic alliances

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