Saudia is expanding its inflight connectivity programme on routes between the dominion of Saudi Arabia and most of Saudia worldwide destinations. This comes after Saudia was providing OnAir’s GSM and Wi-Fi on its A330s for just about three years.
Saudia’s passengers have taken to social media to claim how much they value staying involved with family, friends and associates, updating social media and surfing the web during flights. Comments have included: ‘Thanks, it’s excellent because it’s easy to take advantage of;’ ‘I used my mobile on a flight today: excellent;’ and, ‘Awesome: keep going.’
Saudia’s new A330s, if you want to be delivered throughout this year and next, could be equipped with Mobile OnAir and Internet OnAir. They may join the A330s already flying with OnAir connectivity, bringing the whole to twelve. The airline’s existing and planned fleet of 20 B777-300ERs also will have OnAir’s GSM and Wi-Fi services fitted, enabled by the Thales TopConnect solution. Both fleets will use Inmarsat’s SwiftBroadband, the simplest satellite network designed specifically to supply consistent global coverage.
“Our experience has shown very clearly that passengers desire to have the ability to use their phones, tablets and laptops to stick involved during flights. That alone is a superb enough reason to give connectivity more widely because we value customer satisfaction very highly,” said Mr. Tarik Sindi, VP Marketing & Product Management of Saudia.
The Connected Aircraft
OnAir is building on its heritage of passenger connectivity by optimizing using inflight connectivity pipe, providing applications for cabin crew and the cockpit which help streamline airline operations.
“The way forward for connectivity is especially exciting. There’s far more to it than connectivity for the passenger,” said Ian Dawkins, OnAir CEO. “Airlines run highly automated, complex IT systems. However, the interface between the crew and the bottom relies heavily on paper. That’s outdated, slow, inefficient and dear. We help airlines utilise their IT better, using the connectivity pipe to make operations way more efficient.”