The Business of Passenger Experience
Commercial success in the inflight connectivity business is anything but easy. That isn't stopping newcomers from trying. Saudi Arabia's Taqnia Space group launched the UON offering earlier this month and it has potential. But like other offerings in the market there are questions about how well it can scale up to meet demand (both bandwidth and profits).
European charter specialist Hi Fly really is going to operate the A380. The company confirmed today that it will have the 471-seat aircraft in its fleet by mid-year. And it should be a pretty nice ride, too.
What good is having an inflight wifi connectivity product if no one is using it? Gogo sits flush with satellite capacity and is pushing to increase take rates (and revenue) up dramatically on its platform.
Thales is the latest IFE/C vendor to partner with Chinese conglomerate HNA Group to deliver entertainment and connectivity services on board. But will they really fly? Concerns about the financial stability of HNA raise significant concerns about the long-term viability of the offerings.
More live TV is now flying in South America. Brazilian airline GOL and Gogo agreed to launch Gogo TV this year on the carrier’s fleet of 119 737s.
Korean Air Lines took home an early Christmas present today, with its first CSeries delivery from Bombardier. The carrier is the third to fly the CS300 and introduces a few new features on board to improve the passenger experience.
Looking for free inflight internet connectivity? Japan appears the place to be. ANA will add free internet service on the bulk of its domestic fleet in 2018, delivering more connectivity on more domestic routes than any other carrier in Japan.
Delta and Airbus announced a deal today for at least 100 new A321neo aircraft to be delivered in the first half of the next decade. And, believe it or not, the most significant factor in that decision might not be the planes.
Air France’s Joon subsidiary launches operations tomorrow. The company showed off its aircraft interiors today and announced new destinations for the not-quite-LCC and also not-quite-really-Millennial-targeted services.
Inflight entertainment is now more accessible for those with visual impairment thanks to Virgin Atlantic and Bluebox. The pair teamed up to develop and deliver a new IFE interface fleet-wide, designed to allow passengers with sight loss to interact with the system independently. It is a huge step forward in accommodation for an industry that is often aggressive in not making progress on such fronts.
