DOG
My US-based 121 charter air carrier uses Iridium satfones to do exactly what you talk about.
How, I have no clue, but I could possibly find out - our old Director just left to work for SABRE/FltExplorer...
What ours does is the box on the plane tells the Iridium system the present position, and that I can superimpose on the map in Flight Explorer. I know we use Iridium cuz when I dial the airplane, I dial a 12 digit number through the Iridium system, and dial a local number here in the US which answers "Iridium satellite system" or something like that.
Last edited by dispatchshmoe; 10th February 2011 at 15:29.