AirAsia to launch low-cost Wi-Fi onboard

AirAsia has announced that it will launch low-cost Wi-Fi onboard by year-end to add to its services for passengers.

A group of 120 AirAsia Allstar volunteers boarded a flight on Wednesday for the very first user acceptance testing (UAT) conducted for AirAsia’s Wi-Fi service.

Three instant messaging services, namely LINE, Whatsapp and WeChat, were tested during the flight and the results were positive. Live updates of the flight were shared on the carrier’s official Twitter and Instagram accounts.

A range of Wi-Fi products including Instant Messaging, emails as well as content streaming will be made available gradually on all AirAsia flights with the AK flight code, and will be introduced throughout the AirAsia Group progressively.

“The Wi-Fi equipment that was introduced to us much earlier was just too expensive and we have decided to develop our own. It has taken us five years to come to this stage, but, in true AirAsia style, we have to get it right and provide our guests with the best value at the most affordable rates,” said AirAsia group chief executive officer Tony Fernandes in a press release on Wednesday.

“It will be the first onboard Wi-Fi product in the world at affordable pricing system, and I am excited with the success of our first user acceptance test today. As I promised to the market, this is one of many initiatives that we are rolling out to boost our ancillary income per passenger spent target of RM60 [US$18.87] in the near term.” (jakpost.com)