Soon passengers can access the internet during flights in the Indian airspace with airlines offering in-flight connectivity
Aruna Sundararajan, Telecom Secretary, India, has informed that in-flight connectivity (IFC) on domestic and international flights can kickstart next week after the government issues a notification for the same. She added that airline operators have welcomed the initiative.
IFC allows to make calls and access the internet while on flights. It has already been made available by a slew of airlines globally. India will soon be joining in with the aim to provide the facility in the Indian airspace.
IFC business
The telecom secretary said that airlines were interested in taking up IFC as it could be a competitive strategy to reach out to passengers. She added that the tariffs would be set by the airline operators, but the ultimate decision would depend on the regulator.
Phone calls and internet availability in flights in Indian airspace would be an extra source of revenue in the aviation sector. British telecom company, INMARSAT, has also shown interest in getting into India’s IFC move. Earlier, in 2016, it had conducted a survey which found 83 per cent of passengers preferred flights with IFC.
In-flight connectivity is aimed at working people, especially in the corporate world. As a line of companies will be offering the service, the tariffs are sure to vary accordingly.
IFC abroad
In-flight connectivity is already available in about 30 jurisdictions. AirAsia, Air France, British Airways, Egypt Air, Emirates, Air New Zealand, Malaysia Airlines, Qatar Airways and Virgin Atlantic let their passengers use mobile phones.
In India, the whole process is set to start in two weeks approximately as DoT has already finalised the IFC guidelines. Aruna Sundararajan said that IFC might happen this week or early next week.
In-flight connectivity uses Aeronautical mobile-satellite services (AMSS), to deliver the access.
