Hughes positions newly acquired Anderson as hub for rapid prototyping

Anderson Connectivity, the agile innovator that was recently snatched up by Hughes Network Systems, is being positioned as a hub for rapid prototyping of new inflight connectivity hardware to support Hughes’ raft of in-house IFC projects as well as independent work packages. Melbourne, Florida-based Anderson will also provide key engineering and maintenance assist to Hughes.

The tie-up makes perfect sense. “From an aerospace perspective, we’re doubling down. We’re really excited about continuing to expand and evolve this business,” Reza Rasoulian, SVP & GM of the Hughes Aviation Business Unit told Runway Girl Network of the Anderson acquisition. And, given that Germantown-based Hughes has “a great manufacturing capability in Maryland” — a facility that was AS9100 certified this summer — it will be able to “supercharge” Anderson Connectivity’s capabilities.

Those capabilities are vast. Anderson Connectivity is helmed by Brian Anderson, a respected former LiveTV executive who was instrumental in launching domestic satellite-based television for JetBlue and is known for being well versed in avionics and very complex antenna designs.

For decades, under Brian Anderson’s guidance, Anderson Connectivity has served aviation in the design and development of antenna systems for commercial aircraft, working hand in glove with leading IFC and inflight entertainment companies. In 2019, it broadened its capabilities to support antenna maintenance, repair, and upgrades on a larger scale.

Hughes, meanwhile, is the process of growing its footprint in IFC. Its high-capacity Ka-band IFC system is now flying on Delta Air Lines’ regional fleet — a project for which Anderson Connectivity supplied the KPSUs (power supply units) — and it’s aiding TCI Aircraft Interiors in the rollout of IFC at Turkish low-cost carrier AJet.

Hughes is also preparing to ship two new IFC solutions: a Eutelsat OneWeb Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite-powered system for airlines which uses Hughes’ own electronically steerable antenna and is expected to arrive in 2026; and a hybrid architecture that pairs ThinKom Solutions’ Ka2517 VICTS antenna with Hughes’ LEO-only ESA to bring multi-network, multi-orbit, multi-band and multi-beam functionality to Delta and other undisclosed operators. The latter system has been shortlisted for a 2026 Crystal Cabin Award. And a prototype installation is expected very soon.

“They did an awesome job,” in delivering the KPSUs for the Delta RJ project, said Rasoulian of Anderson Connectivity’s contribution to the high-profile IFC program. “They were on time, high quality, really, really great, and a great partner to us. And when this opportunity came about, we were like, ‘wow, this is really interesting. You know, it’d be great to have Brian and team as a part of the company.’”

Importantly, given that Hughes intends to own its supplemental type certificates (STCs), Anderson Connectivity will be able to assist with that engineering work.

“That was one of the other key tenets of the decision. Brian and team are experts at qualification and certification. We’ve also brought on a certification leader that was a former ODA administrator for the FAA. So, we’ve continued to build up our certification, engineering and quality talent. And look, we’ve got the demand. We’ve got multiple STC programs underway, and as we’ve won this business — a lot of it unannounced — we’ve continued building and expanding the team.”

Another major benefit is the fact that Anderson Connectivity is a Part 145 repair station. When rolling out an IFC program the size of Delta’s, the ability to provide troubleshooting is essential. In the event of a maintenance issue, Anderson Connectivity and its nearly 100 team members will “absolutely” be able to provide support, said Rasoulian, noting that Melbourne, Florida is “a great epicenter of aerospace talent” and Hughes will be “surgically leveraging them to solve issues.”

Notably, as a hub for rapid prototyping, Anderson will also design new IFC hardware, with the Hughes executive revealing:

There’s a lot of great providers out there that we partner with today for servers, for access points, for other hardware. I think the idea is that we’ve added this capability, and we’re going to be looking at the market and seeing what the market needs on a rolling basis. And the rapid innovation is really to help airlines create the best connectivity experience.

He added that Hughes is keeping an eye on “gaps in the market” not just in hardware but in “hardware/software; it’s the convergence of the system, and as a service provider, we are really well suited to come up with really unique ideas.”

Interestingly, Hughes is also able to position Anderson Connectivity as an independent entity.

“Even though we’re an ‘IFC direct-to-airlines provider’ we’re still happy, very formally, to help the industry with products, solutions, services that Brian and his team bring to the table. There are certain agreements in place that lend itself to doing that and enabling us to help the industry at scale,” explained Rasoulian.

In terms of selling products directly to the market, he said Hughes is “very open.”

Anderson Connectivity’s current portfolio includes its line of KPSUs. It has also designed — and owns the patent on — a new conformal multi-band antenna for aero, with maritime, rail and enterprise listed as adjacent markets.

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Featured image credited to Jason Rabinowitz