This design change introduces provisions to the crown skin of the Airbus A330 aircraft for the later fit of a SATCOM antenna (by separate design change).

Conditions: Prior to installation of this design change it must be determined that the interrelationship between this design change and any other previously installed design change and/ or repair will introduce no adverse effect upon the airworthiness of the product.

Global Availability - Communications satellites cover all land masses and there is growing capacity to serve maritime and even aeronautical markets.

Cost Effectiveness - Cost of satellite capacity does not increase with the number of users/receive sites, or with the distance between communication points.

Immediacy and Scalability - Additional receive sites, or nodes on a network, can readily be added, sometimes within hours.

Superior Reliability - Satellite communications can operate independently from terrestrial infrastructure. 

•Improved delay management and scheduling 

•Improved maintenance capability

•Better fleet management

•Better flight crew management

•Reduced turnaround time

•Increased efficiency and predictability