When ZIPAIR finally starts carrying passengers they’ll have a familiar option for inflight connectivity on board. The company announced its selection of Panasonic Avionics to deliver WiFi service on the 787-8 fleet.
By making the most of inflight Wi-Fi services provided by Panasonic Avionics, we hope to become an airline that gives customers the freedom to spend time on the plane in their own personal way and that makes flight time feel short.
– Shingo Nishida, President of ZIPAIR
The wholly owned JAL subsidiary expects to launch passenger flights next week between Tokyo and Seoul, having formally commenced operations earlier this year as a cargo operation as borders remain closed in many parts of the world.
ZIPAIR betting big on WiFi for inflight entertainment
For ZIPAIR passengers the wifi solution means everything in terms of the inflight entertainment offerings. The carrier will not have embedded screens on board. Rather, in keeping with the LCC approach to the market, the airline will depend on travelers to bring their own screens.
But passengers will not have to pay for that pleasure. In a prior announcement the company indicated it would “primarily offer a fee-based option to browse the Internet and stream movies on the passenger’s smartphone or tablet.” That plan has since been updated and now ZIPAIR will provide the service for free to all passengers.
Free Internet Service
The Internet is free for passengers on board ZIPAIR flights.
Even on a long flight, you can spend a comfortable time using email, SNS, etc.
•This is a satellite-based service, and the connection may become unstable depending on flight conditions and weather.
•It may be difficult to connect during high usage.
•Due to limited bandwidth, some internet services may not be available.
Selecting PAC for the solution is not too shocking given that parent airline JAL uses the eXConnect platform on its 787 fleet. The two ZIPAIR 787-8 planes are hand-me-downs from the original JAL operations.
Ken Sain, Chief Executive Officer of Panasonic Avionics Corporation sees the offer as compelling, suggesting it will “help ZIPAIR drive brand loyalty, encouraging their passengers to return time and again.”
Panasonic also notes that the 787s will fly with the newest iteration of the on-board modem, developed in partnership with Newtec. The updated system delivers significant performance improvements compared to prior generations. It can also fully take advantage of capacity on the Eutelsat 172b satellite covering key trans-Pacific routes.
A favor to ask while you're here...
Did you enjoy the content? Or learn something useful? Or generally just think this is the type of story you'd like to see more of? Consider supporting the site through a donation (any amount helps). It helps keep me independent and avoiding the credit card schlock.
Leave a Reply