Internet service provider WirelessG is hoping to literally get a WiFi service off the ground, on local flights.
The company's CEO, Carel van der Merwe, says it is already in negotiations with local airlines to test out the proof of concept (POC) solution it has developed to bring Internet access to passengers on local airlines.
The in-flight Internet technology, called Fly G-connect, is being provided through an exclusive agreement with US-based Row 44, which has an offering on Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines and will offer its services later this year on Norwegian Air Shuttle.
According to Van der Merwe, the hardware expected to manage the solution will be in SA soon. The hardware will be used as a proof for airlines to test, while airlines decide on whether to partner with WirelessG.
The in-flight broadband system is satellite-based and uses Hughes satellite network, which has an extensive global footprint covering 100 countries.
WirelessG says it managed to integrate its billing platform with the in-flight service. Fly G-connect will essentially function like the company's countrywide Internet hotspots, and passengers will be given access for a fee. G-connect customers will be able to use their accounts on board.
The company still needs approval from the Civil Aviation Authority of SA; however, unlike cellular services, WirelessG says the technology will not interfere with critical technology functions of an airplane.
“All that is required now is to legitimise the US approved Supplemental Type Certificates through the South African CAA. Once we have received this approval, we are able to launch the POC aircraft and then be the first to offer in-flight Internet access in Africa,” explains Van der Merwe.
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