China Eastern Airlines will be providing passengers on selected long-haul flights with 3G WiFi service starting Thursday, Nov. 12, becoming the first domestic airline in the country to offer such service, the Shanghai Daily reported.
Zhang Chi, deputy director of the airline's business development office, said on Sunday, Nov. 8, that the offer will first be available to flights from Shanghai to New York, Los Angeles and Toronto served by its Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, which are equipped with satellite communication devices.
Zhang added that during the three-month trial, the WiFi service will also be provided on international flights to Vancouver and San Francisco, and on selected domestic flights to and from Beijing, Guangzhou, Kunming, Chengdu and Chongqing.
According to the report, the use of the service will be limited only to 50 passengers per flight. To avail of the service, a passenger who has a valid booking number for a flight within the trial period should register at the China Eastern website for an access code, which will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis.
"The first 50 people to apply will be sent a code via short message or email," Zhang said. He added that the service will be free during the trial, but in the future, charges will apply.
"We will review network flows during the test run to work out price plans. In the future, we might offer a range of services, with different bandwidths and Internet speeds, and charge accordingly," Zhang said.
Zhang told the Shanghai Daily that the user quota will be subject to review following the test run. He said that passengers with access codes will have full access to the Internet, while those without can still browse a limited number of sites, including the carrier's website.