EMIRATES
COST 10MB for free, or 500MB for US$1
SERVICE PROVIDER On Air
AVAILABILITY Most of the carrier’s A380s (three superjumbos have yet to be retrofitted with the service), as well as selected B777s
INFO The Gulf carrier first offered connectivity into its aircraft in 2011, but charged customers an exorbitant US$2.75 per MB for smartphones and US$7.50 per 5MB for tablets and laptops. The new pricing was just introduced last year, and it makes Emirates one of the world’s most affordable carriers on which to use wifi!
SCOOT
COST US$11.95 for an hour, US$16.95 for three hours, or US$21.95 for 24 hours
SERVICE PROVIDER On Air
AVAILABILITY B787 Dreamliner
INFO When we first flew on Scoot’s B787 delivery flight back in February (see here), we were amazed by the speed of the service. Our flight back coincided with Super Bowl XLIX, and we were able to receive fluid video playback of the New England Patriots defeating the Seattle Seahawks!
LUFTHANSA
COST €9 (US$10) for an hour, €14/US$16 for four hours, €17/US$19 for up to 24 hours
SERVICE PROVIDER Panasonic Avionics
AVAILABILITY Nearly every aircraft on Lufthansa’s long-haul fleet, including its A380 and B747-8
INFO One of the great things about Lufthansa’s wifi offering is that it gives users the option of paying for the service with miles instead of cash. And they’re pretty affordable too! An hour’s use will cost you 3,500 miles, while the four-hours package will set you back 4,500 miles and a full 24-hours costs 1,000 additional miles.
JAPAN AIRLINES
COST US$10.15 for an hour, US$18.80 for 24 hours
SERVICE PROVIDER T-Mobile
AVAILABILITY B777 (on flights to New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Jakarta, Frankfurt, London and Paris), B787 and B767 (on flights to Jakarta)
INFO Another airline that offers great value by allowing members of its JAL Mileage Bank frequent flyer programme to redeem miles for wifi vouchers. The carrier only charges members 2,000 miles for a coupon that entitles them to 24 hours of wifi access.
SINGAPORE AIRLINES
COST US$5.99 for 5MB, US$9.99 for 10MB
SERVICE PROVIDER On Air & Panasonic Avionics
AVAILABILITY Select A380 and B777-300ER
INFO If there was ever a wifi package that left us gasping in horror, it would be the one offered by Singapore Airlines (SIA). The carrier offers one of the most expensive wifi deals available in the market, and it’s important to know what’s you’re paying for – all this to avoid being in the same position as Jeremy Gutsche, a Canadian man who racked up US$1,171 in wifi charges on SIA last year!
UNITED AIRLINES
COST Price varies with each flight depending on flight time
SERVICE PROVIDER Panasonic
AVAILABILITY As of today nearly 600 mainline fleets are equipped with Wi-Fi. United expects to install Wi-Fi on all mainline fleets by the end of this year. Most international aircraft offer wifi service, including all of the airline's B747-400 and B777 models. 41 per cent of new B787 currently provide wifi, with more to be installed over the coming years.
INFO United has obviously invested a lot of time and money into the installation of wifi onto its aircraft, and we absolutely appreciate the fact that the carrier has even chosen to upgrade its aging B747-400s with the service. Now that's a level of commitment that we seldom see today.
