Gogo Inc. (NASDAQ:GOGO) shares climbed toward the end of trading on Wednesday, after the company raised FY18 guidance and announced successful modifications to protect against contamination of its de-icing fluid.
The Chicago-based company, priding itself on being the leading global provider of broadband connectivity products and services for aviation, today announced that as of the end of 2018, modifications to protect against de-icing fluid contamination on its 2Ku North American aircraft have achieved positive results.
As a result of the success of the de-icing modifications, Gogo did not incur certain forecasted costs associated with further de-icing efforts in Q4 2018, and is raising its Adjusted EBITDA guidance to the high end of its previously announced range of $45 million to $60 million for the year 2018.
As of December 31, 2018, Gogo had experienced no incidents of 2Ku system degradation on aircraft with Gogo's recent de-icing modifications.
Based on Federal Aviation Administration data listing airports that have experienced de-icing activity, Gogo estimates that in 2018, aircraft with Gogo de-icing modifications flew more than 5,000 flights that had been de-iced.
A news release out Wednesday reported Gogo's de-icing modifications had been installed on more than 675 aircraft, representing almost 97% of the installed North American fleet. While the vast majority of global de-icing activities occur in North America, Gogo will modify existing 2Ku installations on international aircraft as part of each airline's maintenance program.
Shares hiked 46 cents, or 15.1%, to $3.56.
