Eurowings has equipped more than half of its A320 aircraft with BoardConnect Portable from Lufthansa Systems.
The system, called Wings Entertain, allows passengers on short and medium haul flights to use their own devices to access the inflight entertainment.
Wings Entertain has over 400 songs, blockbuster movies, TV shows, games and numerous audiobooks. It also helps passengers find information on selected destinations, current flight information and the onboard shop.
The cost is just EUR 3.90 per flight.
About half the Airbus fleet already has the system and the entire Airbus fleet will be equipped with it by mid August.
Oliver Wagner, CEO of Eurowings:
“An innovative IFE solution like BoardConnect Portable fits very well with our business model. With Wings Entertain, we are offering our passengers a modern entertainment platform and thus improving their travel experience. And not only that – thanks to our large partner network and the ability to integrate paid content and marketing campaigns, we can generate additional revenues with the new IFE system.”
BoardConnect Portable is even easier to use and more flexible than the conventional BoardConnect from Lufthansa Systems. The advantage of the all-in-one solution is that all of the technical components needed for an IFE system – such as a server and access points – are combined in a single device called Mobile Streaming Unit (MSU). An MSU is about the size of a conventional tablet, weight less than 1.5 kg and can be brought on board easily during regular flight operations.
Since they do not require elaborate cabling, MSUs qualify as non-permanently installed equipment and can be mounted or removed, for example in the galley or in overhead compartments, without affecting other components in the aircraft. This eliminates high costs for hardware, fitting and certification and enables the system to be transferred immediately for further use in leased aircraft as well. An integrated LTE modem allows rapid wireless updates of content while the aircraft is on the ground.
Olivier Krüger, CEO of Lufthansa Systems:
“BoardConnect Portable was unveiled in the fall of 2015, and right from the start there was great interest particularly from niche airlines with smaller fleets. But the flexible use and reliability of the application won over other, larger airlines as well. We are proud that we were able to gain a customer like Eurowings in such a short period of time and install Portable so quickly on the entire fleet.”
N.B. Image credit: Eurowings
