The Australian Business Traveller reported yesterday that Virgin Australia will be the latest international carrier to turn on an inflight wi-fi service, joining the likes of Delta, Singapore Airlines, Virgin America and many, many more. The news comes five months after Qantas announced they would be the first Australian carrier to introduce free Wi-Fi to their domestic A330 and B737 services. This will be rolled from early next year, with trials utilising the NBN Satellite commencing later in 2016.
Virgin will follow closely behind Qantas, also introducing inflight internet to their A330 and B737 aircraft from mid-2017, though they will also be adding it to their international 777s – something that Qantas has not yet committed to. They expect the roll out to take a couple of years.
They haven’t detailed the mechanics behind the offering, nor the cost – though with Qantas setting the bar for hi-speed wi-fi at “free”, you have to expect Virgin to consider a similar approach, at least for its domestic offerings.
In an interview with ABT, Virgin Australia CEO John Borghetti, did say that “we are determined to give Virgin Australia customers the best possible combined connectivity and entertainment experience… and we will work with strategic partners to offer our guests a truly personalised experience”. As with many services around the world, voice services like Skype and FaceTime won’t be permitted by the service, to the welcome benefit of all passengers.
More news as it develops!
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