Those addicted to being online 24/7 always become uncomfortable when on a flight without any means of inflight WiFi internet access. Big flight carriers offer internet services depending on the route, type of aircraft, and several other factors. Many airlines, like British Airways, offer WiFi for a small fee, but there are a handful of airlines that have free WiFi onboard, like Emirates and Turkish Airlines but mostly they offer inflight data packages.
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What remains a fact this that the quality of WiFi is offered in the sky. Exorbitant pricing and slow speeds that would make even a snail yawn are deterring fliers from considering purchasing internet aboard. What still remains a mystery for some is how inflight WiFi internet works.
This inflight WiFi internet is made possible via a network of geostationary satellites located approximately 35,786km above the Earth. Typical bandwidth on board aircraft varies between 1 and 5Mbps, and this bandwidth is shared among all users. The experience cannot be compared to your home internet. Due to the limited bandwidth, video streaming services are not possible, but airlines offer travelers onboard entertainment to avoid users from streaming.
For the best experience, the airlines recommend fliers turn off auto app updates. Your data will travel over 70,000km, which causes high latency some VPNs or cloud services may be impacted.
Some of the familiar carriers that offer inflight WiFi internet include;
Egypt Air
- Aircraft: On selected A330-300
- Provider: OnAir
- Internet price: 2 price packages are available based on time and usage
Emirates
- Aircraft: On about 60% of the total fleet – all A380s and some B777
- Provider: OnAir
- Internet price: Free access to social apps like WhatsApp, Facebook, etc in all classes on A380 aircraft. They have several data bundles (see more later in the article). Free for Emirates Skywards members in First class and Business class during the whole flight.
Qatar Airways
- Aircraft: A380, A350, B787, A319, and select A320, A321, A330-200 aircrafts.
- Provider: OnAir
- Internet price: Prices depend on the passenger’s network provider’s international roaming charges.
Turkish Airlines
- Aircraft: B777-300ER aircraft and progressively on A330-300s.
- Provider: TTNet
- Internet price: Free for Business Class travelers. For Economy Class passengers it costs $9.99 USD per hour or $14.99 for 24 hours.
The case of Emirates inflight WiFi internet
Emirates has several inflight WiFi internet plans, for example, they market their unlimited data until a user lands as their most popular package and it offers unlimited data but media streaming (Netflix, YouTube, etc.), cloud sync, or other high bandwidth services are blocked due to limited satellite data bandwidth. This plan is valid until the plane lands and cannot be used on subsequent flights.
There is also a package for 30 minutes of connectivity, where travelers can use the inflight WiFi internet with no data limit and cannot be used for media streaming, as mentioned above. The carrier also gives free unlimited chat and text messaging for those who want to use; WhatsApp, iMessage, Messenger, WeChat, Line, or Viber Chat. This text-only plan is valid until a flier lands and does not allow web browsing, emails, photos, videos, or voice calls.
Mobile and data roaming coverage are available on most Emirates flights. If your service provider has a roaming agreement with AeroMobile or OnAir networks, you can use your mobile phone to make or receive calls, send texts, and for data roaming during the flight.
Data roaming charges can be very expensive. The charges and services available are determined by your phone contract. To avoid unwanted mobile data roaming charges, it is advised to put your phone in Airplane Mode and use inflight WiFi internet instead.
