[bignaj]

If you read the article: "One vulnerability that Santamarta said he found in equipment from all five manufacturers was the use of 'hardcoded' log-in credentials, which are designed to let service technicians access any piece of equipment with the same login and password."

Sounds like he could access the plane's systems from an administrator's perspective. I would watch the Black Hat presentation to be sure.

[mikeash]

The "all five manufacturers" in question are the manufacturers of satellite equipment. It sounds like he could access the satellite entertainment equipment as an administrator, but that's (one would hope) a far cry from being able to access anything important on the plane.