In-flight Wi-Fi has long been touted as the ultimate in high-flying convenience for. Business and leisure travellers, with the ability to surf, stream (well, maybe) and send messages at 35 000 feet. But while the tech has been around for some time, few passengers have felt compelled to stump up for the price of getting online.
Because it’s certainly not cheap.
While most international airlines serving Cape Town offer in-flight connectivity, it comes at a hefty cost. British Airways will charge you R520 for general access, Emirates is R370, and Virgin Atlantic goes up to R710 for premium access for the entire flight. News24 did a handy deep-dive into the costs over here.
But for travellers flying Stateside next year, the good news is that Delta is rolling out free – yup, gratis – in-fight internet access across its long-haul routes.
Free streaming-quality connectivity is already available on nearly 700 Delta aircraft, most of which are used on domestic routes in the United States, and the airline expects the vast majority of long-haul customers will have access to the product by the end of next year.
‘As we continue to roll out fast, free Wi-Fi and the in-flight experiences it powers, we’re able to serve customers travelling both domestically and internationally in new, in-the-moment ways,’ says Ranjan Goswami, S.V.P. – Customer Experience Design. ‘The scale at which we’re bringing free Wi-Fi to customers is unmatched in the airline industry, and it’s a testament to the incredible efforts of Delta teams across the business that have expertly navigated an extremely complex rollout.’
Right now, Delta is rolling out their free Wi-Fi product on Viasat-equipped widebody aircraft on a route-by-route basis, phasing in new routes as aircraft allow. South American flights will be connected by October 2024, with West Africa online by January 2025 at the latest. South Africa – along with Asia, Australia and New Zealand – will have to wait a little longer though, with connectivity only scheduled for mid-2025 at the earliest.
It's evidently a space to watch, with Turkish Airlines also announcing plans to offer unlimited free Wi-Fi on all flights by the end of 2025.
Air Botswana is planning new routes connecting the Okavango to Cape Town!