Dont let the accompanying picture fool you, we are talking about in-flight entertainment here live television to be exact. Using the US DirecTV, a new source of flying television is now available from Ellipse Direct, a product line from Flight Display Systems. The FDS folks have decided to develop a line of aircraft hardware from cockpit displays, to 45 LCD displays, to in-flight televisionall based on commercial, off-the-shelf, hardware. Hands down, the most interesting feature of the DirecTV service is the antenna! It is based on a SUV design from KVH that is 24, as opposed to the standard 18, ground-based product. Using the latest fiber optic gyros (FOGs), the flying saucer- shaped antenna doesnt need fancy GPS position servos, it uses signal strength coupled into the platform drives and swings the flat plane, slotted antenna around at an amazing 40 degrees per second if needed (this is great for ground maneuvering). Sitting on 4 legs that are stouter than they look, the antenna is installed in a clam shell that allows an antenna unit removal time of 45 seconds. The legs are movable in that they assume an installation position that differs for virtually all installations, as per the STC requirements.

No doubt, if planes install this TV, they will carry the same visual advantage as the hump on the B747 people know by sight that it is TV equipped. Why is it designed like AWACS, you may ask? The answer lies in noise issues, drag and lift profiles and installation ease. Noise is easy the further away from the fuselage and engines, the better. Lift and drag issues are a little more esoteric. If you hold your hand out the window of a moving car, you know that at some position, your hand when shaped like a wing, finds a neutral position when it is roughly perfectly perpendicular wind front. The Ellipse Direct folks found out the same thingthe disc looses most of its drag when it is placed in the undisturbed airflow balancing out most of the lift and drag forces. A few inches behind the disc, the air stream reconnects and little or no impact is felt by the reward, vertical control surfaces. There is a lot more to this story and the Ellipse Direct website is a wealth of information. These folks have their act together and promise a bizjet installation for under $100Kand they are willing to talk about airline applications when they soon finish the certification.

For more info check out http://www.ellipsedirect.com/ on the web, and keep asking yourself the following question: If they can do TV, why cant they do data? By the way, they are also offering a 42 LED display at about the price of a similar LCD device. Contact Jay Healy 702 361-0958 for more information.