Qatar Airways brings connectivity gate to gate

Qatar Airways is opening up its inflight wifi connectivity solution for gate-to-gate services. The move comes on the heels of a policy update from the Qatar’s Communications Regulatory Authority permitting the use of inflight services at any altitude rather than only above 3,000 meters/10,000 feet. Activating the change in service availability will take place in the coming months.

In another first for the MENA region, Qatar Airways passengers will be able to enjoy uninterrupted internet connectivity from the moment they step on board a Qatar Airways flight. This is another significant enhancement to our award-winning levels of service that our passengers around the globe have come to appreciate. We look forward to welcoming passengers on board and helping them stay connected throughout the flight. – Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker

---

---

There is, however, one caveat to the new service policy: “To avoid any interference to aircraft and land-based mobile services, restrictions still apply to the on board use of mobile GSM services and SMS when the aircraft is below 3,000 meters.” Given that many of Qatar’s aircraft include the OnAir GSM picocell connectivity option this could create some confusion among passengers.

Another challenge raised by the new policy will be delivering sufficient satellite capacity to the carrier’s aircraft in and around the Doha hub. As Qatar Airways continues its Inmarsat Global Xpress (GX) rollout the number of aircraft using the capacity delivered by the spot beams over Doha will also grow. The new system already shows some signs of stress as the number of connected passengers grows on any given flight. Combining that with dozens of planes sharing the capacity of any given spot beam and things could get dicey.

Inmarsat must also contend with constant growth of user expectations and demand. As the fleet equipage progresses passengers will become accustomed to having the service available. They are also likely to expect prices to drop, allowing for increased consumption. Whether saturating a spot beam or the individual connection off the aircraft the net result is a poorer passenger experience.

---

---

Inmarsat has two satellites providing coverage to the Europe-Middle East-India-Asia corridor today. That includes the regular spots allocated to those geographies and additional capacity from the steerable beams on the satellites. The company also has the new GX5 satellite slated to launch at the end of the decade. It will significantly boost capacity across those flight paths when it enters service.

The companies must also contend with the significant heat generated by the on-board antenna operating on the ground in a very warm climate. When operating at altitude the cold outside air solves that problem without trouble. On the ground, however, heat dissipation is a real concern for the system.

Header Image: A Qatar Airways 777 on the ground at Doha; soon that plane will be online on the ground