and Viasat have partnered to offer the airline’s passengers the company’s high-performance in-flight connectivity (IFC) solution in a phased rollout.
Spanning the entire fleet
STARLUX Airlines and Viasat unveiled their partnership in early February, with the statement saying that the agreement will allow the carrier’s travelers to enjoy the latter company’s high-performance IFC solution.
According to Viasat, its “high-speed, reliable in-flight WiFi” will be rolled out across the airline’s fleet in phases, covering all 48 of STARLUX Airlines’ current and incoming aircraft, including the Airbus A321neo
, A330-900, A350-900, and A350-1000.
Photo: GingChen | Shutterstock
Ch-aviation data showed that the Taiwan-based carrier currently has 13 A321neo, five A330-900, and eight A350-900s in its fleet, with another 29 aircraft scheduled for delivery. Without options, this includes six A321neo, three A330-900
, two A350-900, and eight A350-1000, as well as ten A350Fs, which presumably will not require the IFC solution given that it is a cargo aircraft.
Viasat pointed out that the airline will either install or transition to its most advanced connectivity system based on the ViaSat-3 “compatible and multi-orbit ready high-performance GM-40 terminal solution.”
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Passion for innovation and customer experience
Don Buchman, the senior vice president and general manager (GM) of commercial aviation at Viasat, noted that the company and the airline share a passion for innovation and customer satisfaction.
“Through this expanded relationship, we look forward to not only providing high quality connectivity, but a comprehensive solution with the capability and flexibility to empower STARLUX to create an advanced, refined connected experience that suits its ambitions and goals.”
The company pointed out that initially, Viasat-enabled aircraft will fly to major hubs across Asia, including Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Macau and Hong Kong, two special administrative regions (SAR) of China.
Data from the aviation analytics company Cirium’s Diio Mi airline planning system showed that in February, out of the 233 weekly flights departing Taiwan, namely either Taichung International Airport (RMQ) or Taipei Taoyuan International Airport
(TPE), 213 were scheduled to other Asian destinations, including major hubs in the aforementioned countries.
The remaining 20 non-Asian weekly departures include flights to the United States, namely Los Angeles International Airport
(LAX, ten weekly flights), San Francisco International Airport (SFO, daily), and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport
(SEA, thrice weekly).
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Complimentary WiFi
According to STARLUX Airlines, first, business, and premium economy passengers can enjoy complimentary and unlimited WiFi services while onboard its flights. Economy class travelers can access free texting services via eligible mediums, including WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and others.
Interestingly, the Taiwanese carrier warned that it has been upgrading its Galactic WiFi service to enhance performance and stability. As part of this upgrade, the “vendor” is upgrading its satellites, which has caused instability in the network supply for some devices.
Photo: Suparat Chairatprasert | Shutterstock
“STARLUX Airlines is actively coordinating with technical engineering teams to upgrade the onboard equipment successively. However, during the firmware update period, passengers may experience unstable connections or be unable to use the in-flight WiFi.”
As a result, starting on November 30, 2024, it has temporarily suspended the sale of its WiFi data plans through its website and to passengers looking to purchase the service while onboard its aircraft.
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