Aircell Expands Management Team, Appoints Ash ElDifrawi as EVP and Chief Marketing Officer

ITASCA, Ill.,  Oct. 25/PRNewswire/ -- Aircell, the world's leading provider of inflight connectivity, today announced the appointment of Ash ElDifrawi as the new Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer.  ElDifrawi is responsible for all customer facing functions including sales, marketing, customer care and portal design.  In addition, he will lead Aircell's initiatives in inflight eCommerce, content and advertising.

ElDifrawi joins Aircell from Hayneedle Inc, a leading online mass merchant retailer where he led the rebranding of the company and development of a revolutionary online shopping experience.  ElDifrawi is an accomplished marketer and general manager with over fifteen years of marketing experience across many industries, including eCommerce, consumer packaged goods, management consulting and retail within the digital space.  He has also held leadership positions with Google, Wrigley, and McKinsey.  

"ElDifrawi's impressive industry experience and track record of using brands to achieve growth make him an excellent fit for our team," said Michael Small, President and CEO of Aircell.  "We look forward to his unique insight as we enter the exciting next phase in our growth as a company."

On more than 1,030 commercial aircraft, Aircell's Gogo® Inflight Internet is now available on more than 3,800 flights daily.  With Gogo, passengers can browse the Web; access online music, games and podcasts; send and receive e-mail; and connect to virtual private networks while flying. The easy-to-use service provides passengers with full Internet access on any Wi-Fi-equipped laptop or personal electronic device at speeds similar to wireless mobile broadband services on the ground.

About Aircell

Aircell® is the world's leading provider of inflight connectivity. As winner of an exclusive FCC frequency license in 2006, Aircell has built a revolutionary mobile broadband network for commercial and business aviation. In 2008, the Aircell Network and its inflight portal, Gogo®, revolutionized the commercial airline passenger flight experience by delivering a robust Internet experience at 35,000 feet. In addition, the Aircell Network provides airlines with connectivity to operations and a path to enhanced cabin services such as video, audio, television and more. A similar feature set is available to Business aircraft operators. Aircell has facilities in Broomfield, Colorado, and Itasca, Illinois. Aircell's vision is to give everyone the ability to stay in touch, in flight®. For more information about Aircell, please visit www.aircell.com.

About Gogo

Gogo®, powered by Aircell, turns a commercial airplane into a Wi-Fi hotspot with true inflight Internet access. Passengers with Wi-Fi enabled devices, such as laptops, smartphones and PDAs, can surf the Web, check e-mail, instant message, access a corporate VPN and more. For more information about Gogo, please visit www.gogoinflight.com. You can also follow 'gogoInflight' on Twitter (www.twitter.com/gogoinflight) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/gogoinflight).

SOURCE Aircell