ANA is expanding its inflight connectivity portfolio, making free internet available to more passengers. The shift, however, is limited and slow to start.
ANA is committed to strengthening its in-flight connectivity and will continue delivering future improvements to enhance customer convenience.
– Tomoji Ishii, Executive Vice President, Customer Experience of ANA
Viasat‘s Amara platform will first be rolled out on a portion of ANA’s 767-300ER fleet. All passengers on board will have access to complimentary high-speed service, supporting messaging, web browsing, and video streaming. This is a notable upgrade from the complimentary messaging tier of service (and browsing in premium cabins) offered on the carrier’s existing long-haul fleet, powered by Panasonic Avionics and Viasat GX (previously Inmarsat).
It is also a necessary upgrade for these aircraft. They previously carried the OnAir L-band solution. With OnAir out of the commercial IFC market these planes went dark.
ANA is, as noted above, starting slow with the Viasat rollout. Aircraft JA625A is first and just six of the carrier’s 767 will receive the new service, three in FY2025 (i.e. by 31 March 2026) and three more in FY 2026 (by 31 March 2027). These aircraft are the newest of ANA’s 767s, delivered to the carrier between February 2011 and March 2012. They’re old, but still have a usable lifespan in passenger service for the carrier, operating domestic and regional routes.
Map generated by the Great Circle Mapper - copyright © Karl L. Swartz.
Following the 767 deployment ANA will add another 37 long-haul planes to the Viasat contract. These include 19 787-9 and 18 777-9. The 777X aircraft are all new deliveries, of course. The 787-9 fleet will be a mix of new delivery and retrofit, according to a Viasat spokesperson.
Read more: JAL brings more Wi-Fi to more passengers for free
Ultimately ANA says it wants to “upgrade additional aircraft and aims to provide free high-speed in-flight internet for all classes on more than 80% of its international fleet by the end of 2030.” That’s a decent number of aircraft still in play for future upgrades. And, of course, Viasat hopes its performance on the committed fleet allows it to earn more ANA business moving forward.
Read more: JAL boosts free internet offerings with streaming service
Also of note: The updated Wi-Fi service on board focuses on international markets. Japan’s domestic market sees robust competition between ANA and JAL offering complimentary service to all passengers, including streaming, depending on the aircraft type. JAL is similarly moving to upgrade its available capacity in the domestic market to ensure it remains competitive.
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