Patent ID: 8032135

Claim:
A wireless communication system for providing high-speed data services to an aircraft, comprising: one or more directional aircraft antennae on said aircraft for receiving and transmitting wireless data signals; an aircraft antenna controller that selectively controls said one or more directional aircraft antennae; a plurality of directional terrestrial-based antennae for receiving wireless data signals from and transmitting wireless data signals to said aircraft, said terrestrial-based antennae distributed amongst a plurality of terrestrial regions, said plurality of terrestrial regions each having an associated bandwidth distribution protocol included in a plurality of bandwidth distribution protocols; a terrestrial-based antenna controller associated with and selectively controlling each of said plurality of directional terrestrial-based antennae; and a system controller that monitors a location of said aircraft within a predetermined region and monitors and coordinates an operation of said plurality of directional terrestrial-based antennae located within said predetermined region; wherein said system controller is configured to dynamically adjust an amount of bandwidth supplied by said data signals, said amount of bandwidth adjusted based upon a first one of the bandwidth distribution protocols when the aircraft is in a first one of the terrestrial regions, said amount of bandwidth adjusted based upon a second one of the bandwidth distribution protocols when the aircraft is in a second one of the terrestrial regions.