Scandinavian Airlines will offer wireless Internet and GSM services using Panasonic Avionics’ Global Communications Suite, the companies announced Friday.
The service, SASWiFi, will allow passengers to surf the Internet and use their GSM phones. The first plane to be equipped with SASWiFi will be in the air in a few days, the airline said. Scandinavian Airlines’s Boeing 737-800 fleet will be the first to be equipped with WiFi onboard, with the very first flights being a domestic flight within Norway, and flights to and from Oslo and Stockholm, Frankfurt, Paris and other European cities. In the summer 10 B737-800s will be equipped with WiFi, while in the future WiFi will be offered on all short-haul routes and Scandinavian Airlines intercontinental routes as well.
"We’re always trying to find innovative ways of improving the flight experience for our customers. This is why we’re happy to be able to offer broadband WiFi services, along with GSM telephony and wireless entertainment, as we know that these are services our customers have really been asking for," says Robin Kamark, chief commercial officer at Scandinavian Airlines. "We’ve chosen a supplier that has extensive experience of delivering in-flight entertainment systems and we’re sure that we’ve made a good strategic choice."
SASWiFi Internet services offer a shared connection of 12 Mbps, which includes full Internet connection and online shopping. The next phase will also include films, videos, games, information about the destination and services that can be booked for the destination, including taxis, hotel reservations, etc. From 2012 Scandinavian Airlines will also offer GSM and GPRS telephony, which will allow passengers to send and receive SMS texts, use GPRS and also make and receive calls.