UAE | General
Web fans fly high with Etisalat's new service
Online enthusiasts have welcomed a new service that offers flight passengers the chance to get broadband internet connections
- By Daniel Bardsley, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:00 December 28, 2005
Dubai: Online enthusiasts have welcomed a new service that offers flight passengers the chance to get broadband internet connections.
Etisalat subscribers will be able to surf the net at more than 30,000 feet on any seat in the cabin. Organisers of the Lufthansa service have promised the internet speed in the sky is similar to that down below in homes and offices.
Lufthansa and some other major airlines have offered wireless internet connections since last year through the Connexion by Boeing facility. Now Etisalat subscribers will be able to plug into the service on Lufthansa through their existing internet accounts.
Asif Iftekhar, who owns an online sales company, said: "This is good for everybody. It is very useful to have the internet on flights, both to help with work and to kill time."
Etisalat said the service will be offered more widely in future as other carriers take part.
Among the other airlines that currently offer Connexion by Boeing - and which could eventually offer a service like Lufthansa's to Etisalat subscribers - are SAS and Singapore Airlines.
Abu Dhabi-based Etihad is set to install the system on some aircraft soon.
Etisalat/eCompany internet subscribers can secure online access on Lufthansa using their dial up username and password. Al Shamil users must use the username and password for their associated dial up account.
There is a flat charge which varies according to the length of the flight, with trips of less than three hours billed at Dh54.9, those between three and six hours at Dh73.3 and anything longer than six hours at Dh110.
Customers will be billed through their monthly Etisalat account statement and will not have to pay on-board the aircraft.
Adnan Arif, one of the UAE's top internet bloggers, said he was pleased to hear of the latest initiative.
"For business people it will be great and it will also be good for regular users and in emergencies," he said.
Customers will need WiFi enabled laptops or mobile phones to use the service, which will let them check their e-mails, look at the latest news or stock market prices.
Etisalat said it expected many customers to make reservations and plan their onward journey while on-board.
"With the internet now becoming an integral part of people's lives in terms of professional and personal use, this initiative reflects Etisalat's proactiveness in fulfilling our customer needs," Abdullah Hashim, senior manager at eCompany, said.
The service is offered on a free trial until January 15.
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