GROUPE ADP, ITS SUBSIDIARY HUB ONE AND AIR FRANCE THANK ARCEP FOR AWARDING A PROFESSIONAL 4G/5G FREQ
Arcep, the electric communications and postal services regulatory authority, has awarded a ten-year 4G/5G license to Hub One, a company member of Groupe ADP, in order to launch a very high-speed private mobile network covering Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Paris-Orly and Paris-Le Bourget airports.
Air France, also involved in the development of this future 4G/5G network, will become the first airline to use this innovative solution.
The awarding of this band frequencies to Hub One is a major stage in the telecommunications technologies expansion over the airports platforms of the Île-de-France region, to the benefit of all players. The unprecedented partnership settled up between Hub One, Groupe ADP and Air France, will allow to optimize the uses of the band frequencies allocated by Arcep, taking into account the specific needs of each operator.
A major step towards the future airport
The airport sector is currently undergoing a digital transformation: professional use continues to evolve and requires cutting-edge technology. As a result, Arcep's award of the 2.6 GHz TDD frequency band contributes to the development of the "smart airport" that Groupe ADP is promoting to facilitate the emergence of new services to improve operational fluidity and security and the customer experience.
Hub One's roll-out of a very high-speed and scalable professional network is at the heart of this digital transformation. The frequencies will be used initially in 4G on a network that is already ready for 5G and which can switch once the ecosystem has matured. This private mobile network will support all of the services currently available at Paris airports (mobile telephone services, PMR[1], luggage traceability, etc.) for airlines, many professionals, companies and government departments. It will make it also possible to implement innovative services that require very high mobile speeds. Unlike the 4G networks for the general public also covering already Paris airports, this 4G/5G Pro network will offer a highly available and secure mobility solution for all critical and professional uses.
As part of this tripartite partnership, Air France will benefit from frequencies allocated by Arcep made available by Hub One. Innovation is an essential component for Air France and fully in line with the Air France-KM group's strategy. Thus, the company has naturally invested in this project in order to be a major player in tomorrow's air transport. Air France intends to improve its operational performance and thus customer satisfaction thanks to the voice, data and video communications enabled by this technology, with the long-term objective of having all its communication tools connected to this 4G/5G network.
Otherwise, the roll-out of this 4/5G network will also serve a professional ecosystem of over 120,000 employees, who work at the three Paris airports every day, at 1,000 companies of all sizes and sectors; some of them don't have the financial, material and operational resources for their own private mobile network.
Edward Arkwright, Deputy CEO of Groupe ADP and Chairman of Hub One, states: "It is crucial to offer the best technological conditions to businesses and the entire economic ecosystem evolving at our airports, so that business grows there. This partnership set up with Air France and our subsidiary Hub One is a major step in this direction. With this new high-speed network available to all professional players, we are making our Parisian airports more powerful and attractive, so that they continue to be catalysts for economic activity and job providers."
For Guillaume de Lavallade, CEO of Hub One, "The award of 4G/5G Pro frequencies is excellent news for Hub One. Because of our expertise, we operate in a complex environment and are constantly innovating to help our clients with their digital transformation. The roll-out of a private 4G/5G mobile network is a major step for accelerating the development of the smart airport and therefore better addressing the challenges facing the community of stakeholders involved in Industry 4.0."
In addition, Jean-Christophe Lalanne, Executive vice president Information Technology of Air France-KLM, indicates: "This initiative is one more way to achieve operational excellence and will allow us to be even more competitive in the future. This is why we decided to invest in this innovative programme that supports the Air France-KLM group's strategy. Air France is proud to be able to start using a high-speed professional mobile network that meets both its customers and staff's expectations."