summary
- Some airlines offer fast, free WiFi on all flights.
- Business class and loyalty members often have free onboard WiFi.
- Some airlines offer limited free WiFi options for economy passengers.
The rapid adoption of remote work has made WiFi non-negotiable for many travelers, and more and more airlines are offering the service. Airlines that cannot offer free Wi-Fi to their passengers are becoming less and less attractive in the eyes of most travelers.
Despite this, only a handful of airlines offer completely free WiFi to passengers on all flights, and many others still have significant limitations on their services. In this article, we’ll look at the airlines that offer the best free WiFi onboard economy and business class.
US mobile carrier services
JetBlue is a great place to start. The Long Island-based ultra-low-cost airline offers free high-speed WiFi to all passengers using ViaSat, becoming the first major U.S. airline to do so in more than a decade. Ta. The company has been offering his Fly-Fi free of charge to all customers on its Airbus A320, A321 and Embraer 190 aircraft since 2017. However, this service has some limitations and may be unreliable on many water routes.
Photo: Bradley Kathryn | Shutterstock
This offer is in partnership with Amazon Prime. Unlike its competitors, where he can only use one screen at a time, users can stream videos or use multiple devices at the same time. JetBlue also promises download speeds of up to 20Mbps, higher than any of its competitors.
United Airlines has long offered passengers free access to messaging services like iMessage and WhatsApp, but recently it has shifted to offering free Wi-Fi. Currently, T-Mobile customers can enjoy free internet access on their mobile devices.
Photo: Lorenzachs | Shutterstock
Delta Air Lines previously maintained a similar policy to T-Mobile, but has since enhanced its services. As of February 2024, the company says its fast and free WiFi has been rolled out to all of its domestic trunk fleets, and it aims to roll out the service to all fleets by the end of the year.
Products for overseas markets
Australia’s flag carrier Qantas offers similar free WiFi to its customers, but only on domestic flights. The airline has also partnered with ViaSat since 2019 to provide free internet on select flights operated by Boeing 737-800s and Airbus A330-200s. Qantas’ system has up to 12Mbps of processing power per device, which the airline says is “10 times faster” than traditional in-flight systems, although it is much lower than JetBlue’s. Masu.
Photo: Ryan Fletcher | Shutterstock
Air New Zealand is another airline that offers free WiFi with fewer restrictions. The company says it offers free Wi-Fi to all passengers on its Airbus A320neo aircraft, which serve Australia, the Pacific Islands and some New Zealand domestic routes.
The service has since been included on most of its 787s, but its 777s do not offer free WiFi. This connectivity is made possible through a partnership with Inmarsat and Panasonic Avionics. In 2019, Executive Traveler tested the airline’s download speeds on its A320neo and found them to be up to 4.7Mbps.
Photo: Alphonse Jimos | Shutterstock
Recently, Malaysia Airlines also made headlines by expanding its WiFi service. In November 2023, the airline expanded its free WiFi service to passengers in all classes, and the service was first introduced on its widebody aircraft. In the coming months, Malaysia’s flag carrier aims to expand connectivity to include its own narrowbody fleet.
Finally, Thai low-cost airline Nok Air offers free WiFi on all its Boeing 737 aircraft. The airline began operations in his 2014 and was the first airline to expand into Asia with support from Thaicom. Many other carriers also offer some form of free WiFi, and fortunately, the list continues to grow over the years.
Free Economy WiFi (with pitfalls)
China Eastern Airlines offers free WiFi, but there are some caveats. Although called “testing,” WiFi options have been available for years. Passengers who book on China Eastern Airlines can sign up for a free trial of the airline’s internet access. However, it will only be available to the first 100 people. The carrier says it’s on a “first come, first served” basis.
American Airlines brings high-speed Wi-Fi to 500 regional aircraft
The company already offers in-flight WiFi on more than 1,000 major aircraft.
The service can be used on mobile phones, laptops and other devices with pre-flight registration, but China Eastern has blocked many popular sites, making the free Wi-Fi less appealing. As always, connecting in China almost always comes with pitfalls.
Photo: Fast Tail Wind | Shutterstock
Philippine Airlines also offers free WiFi to all passengers, but with limitations. All customers have access to the company’s myPAL hotspot with a 10 MB free chat plan.
This plan does not support videos or photos. However, a business class passenger gets an additional 100MB. According to Airways WiFi, myPAL is available on Philippine Airlines’ Boeing 777 aircraft, only on the London to Manila and Manila to London routes, and on the airline’s Airbus jets. Several other carriers offer unlimited free WiFi as well.
Premium Passengers and Loyalty Members
Business fares and loyalty clubs can be expensive, but they usually offer the benefit of free onboard WiFi. This isn’t surprising, since business travelers are most likely to have jobs that require high-speed WiFi onboard.
Free WiFi: Vistara offers free service for Club Vistara members
The company offers this service on its Dreamliner and Airbus A321neo aircraft.
Emirates, the UAE’s flag carrier, offers free chat on WhatsApp, Messenger and other services to Emirates Skywards Blue, Silver or Gold members traveling in business class. Platinum Skywards members enjoy unlimited WiFi access no matter which class you travel in.
Photo: Petr Bonek | Shutterstock
However, free WiFi throughout the flight is exclusive to Skywards members traveling in First Class or Platinum Members traveling in Business Class. All Emirates aircraft have built-in internet access. The company said the service, which previously offered all passengers 20MB for free and unlimited texting within two hours, now offers some form of free access to all Skywards members. It is said that it has been changed to
Singapore Airlines is one of the latest airlines to introduce unlimited free WiFi for its loyalty members. According to One Mile At A Time, the airline recently offered free WiFi throughout the flight to KrisFlyer members seated in all cabin seats.
-Pace.jpeg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
Photo: Vincenzo Pace I Simple Flying
Qatar Airways offers free WiFi to economy class customers, but the options are much more limited. In 2018, Qatar introduced Super WiFi through Inmarsat’s GX Aviation technology, offering travelers one hour of free internet access. However, according to Qatar’s webpage, you must be a Privilege Club member to take advantage of the free time. Previously all passengers had access to his one hour of free WiFi, but Qatar’s website now states that it is only available to royal members.
Scandinavian Airlines offers free high-speed WiFi to travelers in SAS Business, SAS Plus, EuroBonus Diamond, and Gold members on select domestic and European flights. The company said flights to Asia, Canada and the United States are slow and allow basic internet use, but not streaming. Scandinavian Airlines’ WiFi is powered by his ViaSat and claims passengers can get speeds of up to 12Mpbs for most of the flight.
Photo: Carlos Yudica | Shutterstock
Aer Lingus in Ireland offers free WiFi to Business Class and AerClub Concierge customers. On the Airbus A330, the customer can use his WiFi, data and text, but on the A321LR he only has WiFi available. Aer Lingus offers his 5Mbps upload capacity.
