Inflight Wifi

In-flight passengers can access WiFi only when allowed, say new rules

The government on Monday clarified that in-flight passengers will be able to use internet services through WiFi only when electronic devices are permitted to be used in the aircraft even after it attains altitude of 3,000 metres in Indian airspace. Under Flight and Maritime Connectivity Rules, 2018, the government has mandated that In-flight and Maritime Connectivity service providers shall provide the operation of mobile communication services in aircraft at a minimum height of 3,000 metres in Indian airspace to avoid interference with terrestrial mobile networks. "Notwithstanding the minimum height in Indian airspace referred to in sub-rule (1), internet services through Wi-Fi in aircraft shall be made available when electronic devices are permitted to be used in the aircraft," as per the new rule notified on Monday. The newly notified rule will be called Flight and Maritime Connectivity (Amendment) Rules, 2024.

Tata-owned Air India to soon provide Wi-Fi facilities on board flights

Air India will soon introduce Wi-Fi on board flights, starting with the A350 aircraft on the Delhi-London Heathrow route. The Tata Group-owned airline, which has embarked on an ambitious transformation journey, on Sunday commenced services between Delhi and London Heathrow with the A350-900 plane. The flight will be operated twice a day on the route, a release said on Monday. Its A350 aircraft feature 28 private suites with full-flat beds in business, 24 seats in premium economy and 264 economy seats. According to the airline, it will be introducing on board Wi-Fi soon, starting with the A350 on the Delhi-London Heathrow route. Earlier this year, the loss-making carrier started inducting A350 planes. "The A350-900 will replace the currently deployed Boeing 777-300ER and Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner on 14 of the 17 weekly flights. As a result, an additional 336 seats will be available on the Delhi-London Heathrow route each week," the release said.

Air India begins offering wireless inflight entertainment service

Air India on Wednesday said it has started providing wireless inflight entertainment service in its existing wide body aircraft till completion of retrofit. Many passengers have been complaining about glitches and non-functional inflight entertainment systems in some aircraft of the Tata Group-owned airline, which is in the process of retrofitting its old fleet and inducting new planes. The new inflight entertainment service 'Vista', which was recently introduced in its existing wide body fleet, will also be made available in narrow body planes. It will not be available in the newly-inducted B777 and A350 aircraft, according to a release. Vista has been introduced in the existing wide body fleet to provide customers with uninterrupted entertainment until the retrofit, it added. Air India's new wide-body planes have a new inflight entertainment system. The airline has an operational fleet of 140 aircraft. With Vista, passengers can stream content on their personal electronic device

AirAsia partners with Sugarbox to provide in-flight wi-fi service

AirAsia India in partnership with cloud technology firm Sugarbox has started providing in-flight wi-fi service on all its aircraft, according to a joint statement. The service will enable travellers on AirAsia India flights to access over 1,000 international and Indian movies, short movies, web series episodes and stream buffer-free content from OTT apps from the system installed in the flight. "We are delighted to partner with AirAsia India to launch a multi-feature in-flight experience hub - 'AirFlix'. This service will be pivotal in enhancing the in-flight experience for passengers and generating ancillary revenue for the airline, by unlocking an in-air digital economy through commerce and Ads. 'AirFlix' is available across the AirAsia India fleet of 28 aircraft," Sugarbox co-founder Rohit Paranjpe said. He said AirFlix will be available to all fliers through a local in-flight wi-fi at no extra cost. According to the statement, the service has launched with storage capacity of 8

Global in-flight wifi player Gogo opens office in Chennai, enters India mkt

To market products to Indian airlines