One of the most recent and popular improvements in airborne communications has been the development of inflight WIFI. Instantly popular for owners and charter clients alike, this has been a true revolution in the functionality of aircraft and the ability of passengers to stay connected regardless of whether they are airborne or in the office. It has allowed an aircraft to be a much more productive means of transportation.
Understandably, WIFI is at the top of many buyer’s wish list, and it is incredibly common for aircraft to have this installation completed post-closing and prior to the aircraft’s entry into service. But all WIFI is not the same, and there are a variety of different solutions to getting WIFI in your aircraft, all of which offer different functionality and vastly different price points.
In the most basic form, there are two main types of WIFI solutions that can be installed in aircraft. The first, and often most cost effective, is the “air to ground” solution. (Europe does not have the air to ground network, so this system will not function there.) This uses towers on the ground to pick up and transmit data to the aircraft as you travel. It can be an incredibly good solution, offers reasonable connection speeds and is a functional tool for keeping up to date during flights. However, this solution will not provide you the broadband-like speeds we have grown accustomed to at home or in the office. It will be quite a bit slower, but still fast enough for file transmission, and even Youtube with a strong signal. The major drawback with the air to ground system is that it only works where there are towers. However, if you leave the service area, you will lose WIFI.
The other version is satellite. This offers the benefit of mostly global communications coverage, so long international flights can use WIFI throughout the trip. Typically, the cost of using a satellite system is higher than the air to ground system. Until now, satellite and air to ground had pretty equivalent transmission speeds. Starting around 2015, a new systems of inflight internet called the KU and the KA band were introduced. These offer speeds close to what you experience at home. Both are popular additions to any private aircraft, and have particular attraction to the large cabin size aircraft where the size of the necessary antennas makes them much more suitable. Both installation and usage rates will be quite significant, so be prepared that there is a cost to this incredible ability. Many clients, however, are more than willing to pay in order to stay in touch with the outside world during their flight.
Seamless integration with smartphones has been added to the functionality of most systems, and we will certainly see more systems in the very near future that allow calls to and from your mobile device as if you were on the ground. Certain systems allow this currently with select phones and operating systems, but others include the ability for a multitude of different phones to operate simultaneously on board. There are quite a few companies competing in this space offering a variety of solutions and products. Each one has pros and cons, so talk to your avionics provider and to the WIFI company to get all the terms and costs of both installation and use.
There is no single, simple solution for WIFI in your aircraft and you should have your team research your options carefully. But adding WIFI to the aircraft can turn a previously quiet flight into a productive time, with few distractions during which you can be more effective
Blogs are written from real world experience by Colibri Aircraft’s individuals. If you have any questions or comments about the topic of this blog, please feel free to contact us at enquiries@colibriaircraft.com
