In October of this year, the first Lufthansa short- and medium-haul aircraft will take off with broadband internet on board.
Lufthansa’s entire A320 family fleet is expected to have the innovative technology installed by mid-2018.
The first aircraft was equipped with the technology in June. In the coming weeks, the onboard system will be tested for functionality and stability. Lufthansa passengers will likely be able to use the new internet service from October. Other airlines in the Lufthansa Group will follow at a later date.
The future service from Lufthansa and its technology partner Inmarsat is based on the latest broadband satellite technology (Ka-band) and offers seamless, reliable coverage on short- and medium-haul flights through Inmarsat’s Global Xpress network.
Passengers will be able to access the internet using their own mobile devices via Wi-Fi. In addition to basic surfing and email, other more sophisticated applications will be possible, including video streaming.
At a later date passengers will be able to use their cellphones for SMS and data transfer via their own mobile accounts.
Lufthansa was the first airline to provide broadband internet access on intercontinental flights, in December 2010. Since June 2015 FlyNet has been available on all 107 long-haul aircraft in the Lufthansa fleet.
N.B. Image credit: wikipedia.org
