For operators clamoring to take full advantage of Inmarsat’s new Swift64 airborne data service, Honeywell and Thales announced that the new MCS-7000 satcom system has received FAA approval. The first MCS-7000 has been shipped to Gulfstream’s Appleton, Wis. completion center for installation on a Gulfstream IV-SP owned and operated by Phillips Petroleum. The seven-channel satcom system, developed jointly by Honeywell in Phoenix and Thales Avionics of London (formerly Racal), replaces Honeywell’s six-channel MCS-6000 satcom system. Marc McGowan, Honeywell satcom product line director, said the MCS-7000 provides enhanced long-range communications capabilities for voice, fax and data transmission, while saving weight and space compared with the MCS-6000. While designed to use the existing Inmarsat satellite constellation, the MCS-7000 system also offers future potential to interface with alternative satellite systems, according to John Mountifield, marketing director for Thales Avionics. “The MCS-7000 enables the Honeywell-Thales team to provide enhanced communications capability for customers through new satellite systems that will become operational over the next few years,” said Mountifield. He added that the system is compatible with future aeronautical telecommunications network (ATN) requirements for airborne datalink communications with air traffic controllers.