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Early Success Marks Demonstration of First-Of-Its-Kind Airline Communication System

October 11, 2000

Comair, Inc. regional airline, a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, is participating with GE Harris Aviation Information Solutions, LLC in the demonstration of a breakthrough in automated wireless communications that promises to enhance an airline's bottom line by substantially improving operating efficiency.The world's first fully functional system of its type demonstrated in regional airline use, the innovative wireless communication system incorporates GE Harris Aviation Information Solutions' Airline-link® Out, Off, On, In (OOOI) and fuel management features. Airline-link enables automated data communication between an aircraft, in flight and on the ground, and a ground station. Captured data such as the aircraft's location is then immediately available on line and is retrievable later via the flight number, aircraft tail number, date and time, or other criteria. Until now, many airlines have depended on manual, often imprecise, capture of such data by crews or ground-based personnel. Other Airline-link services, all wireless, include but are not limited to: a cashless cabin, which permits passenger credit card transactions; flight operations quality assurance (FOQA); and maintenance operations quality assurance (MOQA). The fuel management function supports the airline's effort to optimize fuel usage by monitoring and recording the quantity of fuel on board throughout the flight. These services can reduce by several hundred thousand dollars per aircraft an airline's annual operational costs.The demonstration involves a total of 1,000 flights by two Comair aircraft equipped with the system. Demonstration on the first aircraft is currently under way and has already yielded valuable results. Installation of the system on the second aircraft is scheduled for completion this month.Since its founding in 1977, Comair, Inc. has grown to become the world's largest independently owned regional airline, serving nearly 7 million customers last year. Comair is a carrier in the Delta Connection program and currently offers flights to more than 90 cities in 30 states and three countries.GE Harris Aviation Information Solutions LLC, a company established in 1998 by General Electric and Harris Corporation, provides unique information systems and services that enable customer airlines to gather and immediately use real-time data to monitor and analyze operations.®Airline-link is a registered trademark of GE Harris Aviation Information Solutions, LLC.