Note: Additional, updated data on the Spirit WiFi rollout progress is now available here.
Spirit Airlines is now online in the sky. The first few planes fitted with the company’s in-flight wifi connectivity offering recently entered service for passenger use, though a formal launch is not expected until later this year.
The company confirmed the system is available to travelers in a recent statement:
We are currently conducting initial, limited Wi-Fi testing on a number of our A321 aircraft. Guests onboard these planes are able to access the Wi-Fi service at a reduced price during this temporary trial period. We look forward to sharing more Wi-Fi updates as our project progresses throughout the year.
The discounted pricing was reported as $1 for the lower-end plan and $3 for the higher speeds by one user.
The carrier announced plans to install wifi in May 2018, with Thales Inflyt providing the integration services on HughesNet’s Jupiter Ka-band satellites. At the time it hoped to be active fleet-wide by Summer 2019.
Installations began in September 2018. A series of issues, mostly related to the antenna system, derailed the program timeline.
Read More: Operating in a partnership Spirit
The antenna issues resolved as the company shifted to the Thinkom Ka2517 solution, allowing for installations to pick up pace.
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Spirit is not the only customer of the Thales Inflyt satellite internet service. Air Canada also intends to use the solution on its 737 MAX fleet. It is unclear if any of those planes have had the replacement antenna solution installed yet.
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