Air New Zealand is planning to introduce inflight Wi-Fi in the second half of 2017.
Flights between Australia and New Zealand will be the first to see the service, with it becoming progressively available on Tasman, Pacific Island and long-haul jet fleets from the end of 2017.
Domestic services are also likely to offer Wi-Fi from 2018.
Air New Zealand is in the final stages of negotiations with Inmarsat and Panasonic Avionics with internet connectivity to be supplied by Inmarsat’s new global GX satellite constellation.
It will be integrated with Air New Zealand’s in-cabin Panasonic Avionics technology.
Christopher Luxon , Air New Zealand chief executive:
“Given Air New Zealand operates some of the longest flights in the world, and in oceanic areas where there has historically been poor quality satellite service, we have patiently worked with partners until comfortable that a service which meets the high expectations of our customers is available.”
Mr Luxon also said the airline’s new system will also allow it to enhance real time features within its Inflight Entertainment System as well as providing flight crew with an enhanced ability to manage customer requests related to their ground travel.
Air New Zealand expects to release prices for the service in the first half of 2017.
About Air New Zealand
Air New Zealand is the national airline of New Zealand and is based in Auckland.
Routes: Air New Zealand operates to 22 domestic and 29 international destinations in 16 countries around the Pacific rim (within New Zealand, Australia, the South West Pacific, Asia, North America) and the United Kingdom.
Fleet: Air New Zealand operates a fleet of 103 aircraft in total, with 33 more on order. The average age of the fleet is just over 7 years.
The fleet is a mixture of Airbus, Boeing, Aerospatiale and Bombardier.
- 29 Airbus A320 (1 more on order)
- 3 Boeing 767-300ER
- 7 Boeing 777-200ER
- 8 Boeing 777-300ER
- 7 Boeing 787-9 (5 more on order)
- 13 Airbus A320/A321 NEO (13 on order)
- 26 Aerospatiale ATR 72 (14 more on order)
- 23 Bombardier Q300
The Boeings operate the long haul routes, the others are for domestic and short haul.
Numbers: About 14 million passengers a year.
Alliance: StarAlliance
Image credit: Air New Zealand
