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Miles above the earth: Once even business people could put their mobile phone in confidence for lack of reception. Internet has long since entered the plane. Experts see it as a big market. But in Europe, airlines remain skeptical.
What an unfamiliar feeling: Turn off the phone, for a few hours of the world, to be accessible to all. In recent years, it was thought that this was only possible by air.
Even business people or managers should have secretly enjoyed this forced break without emails or calls. This vanishes more and more so this last treasure of inaccessibility. For a long time, it was technically possible to surf the Internet by satellite in the air. As technology becomes more sophisticated, experts are already talking about a "gold mine" for airlines.
"The high-speed Internet on board European planes promises a huge friction for the entire industry," says Andreas Spaeth, an aviation journalist. The London School of Economics, for example, is forecasting global sales of $ 130 billion by 2035. $ 30 billion accounted for only additional revenue from the airlines.
Although Internet in the air has long been possible and widespread, especially in the United States. In Europe, however, many airlines remain skeptical. This is mainly due to the technology used up to now, in which the data is transmitted by satellite to the aircraft receivers.
This is too expensive and the speed of the Internet is often "inadequate", according to the low-cost airline Ryanair. "We do not see W-Lan as a big change, as more and more customers are downloading content to their personal device before the flight," the Irish airline said on request
. the corresponding Wi-Fi offer in their machines. "The cost of setting up and running an internet connection on board is very high," said a spokesman. The airline is considered a holiday flyer, their customers are mainly families with children – where no employer takes the high fees. "Our offers must therefore be attractive and equally affordable for a private traveler," he says.
According to a recent survey by the German Air Transport Association, about 47% of those surveyed said that the Internet on board was a good thing. Five years ago, he was still 40%. During the same period, the number of opponents decreased.
Even new technologies could make many airlines think in Europe. For example, Deutsche Telekom is testing its so-called EAN technology with the satellite company Inmarsat and Nokia. The data is transmitted not only by satellite, but also via the LTE signal via ground radio antennas, at speeds up to 1200 km / h.
Nearly 300 antennas are installed throughout Europe, according to David Fox Telekom responsible for flight services. Data transfer should be faster and cheaper. The first customer is the British airline IAG. The technology is still in the testing phase. "However, discussions are already taking place with other airlines," says Fox.
Lufthansa should also be open-minded and has always been one of the pioneers of the Internet on board. The Group and its subsidiary Eurowings have been supporting a corresponding offer for long-haul flights for many years. "Since spring 2017, Lufthansa also offers Wi-Fi access on its German and European routes," said a spokeswoman. The service is not very cheap. In addition, the aviation giant admits that the quality of the satellite connection "is influenced by various environmental factors". In addition, data transmission could be interrupted for a few minutes during the transition between satellites.
Cheap airline Ryanair absolutely wants to keep an eye on the subject. "We will continue to observe how it evolves," says the company, but notes at the same time: "Some are even happy to be unable to be contacted during their flight and have a break in emails and social networks.
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