Estonian Air Rolls Out Fleet-Wide IFE Streaming Solution
- Lightweight and portable, the IFE streaming solution developed by MI Airline has been implemented across Estonian’s entire fleet of CRJ900 NextGen and Embraer 170 aircraft.
Tallin and Amsterdam | March 23, 2015– To make the time spent onboard more meaningful, Estonian Air is now enabling customers to connect their Wi-Fi enabled mobile devices and notebook computers to a secure in-cabin network. Launched in January, this new system is successfully allowing passengers to read newspapers and magazines, view RSS-feeds, chat with others onboard, play games and much more.
According to CCO Indrek Randveer, Estonian Air aims deliver to passengers at 30,000 feet the same “e- lifestyle experience” common to every Estonian on the ground.
“In first phase of rollout, we want to offer our passengers an opportunity to use this onboard solution to read Estonian (and in the future also international) magazines, spend time playing entertaining games or chat with family members and friends who are also onboard,” says Randveer.
“In cooperation with the Dutch company MI Airline and with their ingenious AirFi system, the entire fleet of Estonian Air is now equipped with a fast and portable network which provides for us a solution that does not require any modification to the aircraft. This enables us to offer passengers a ‘connected experience’ using their own devices. Our system does not require passengers to install an app before the flight and the service is provided for free,” he adds.
When passengers connect to Estonian Air’s new onboard network, they will be greeted with a user- friendly portal where all information is provided in both English and Estonian. In addition to chatting, playing games and reading quality magazines and newspapers, travellers can also consult Estonian Air’s bespoke Destination Guide for ideas on how to spend time in various cities, or plan thier next Estonian Air getaway.
“We are very proud to have Estonian Air as one of the first airlines to implement the MI Airline system fleet-wide and look forward to developing additional onboard network opportunities together,” says Job Heimerikx CEO of AirFi about the launch. “With AirFi, Estonian Air has tapped into a wide realm of potential for ancillary offerings and entertainment”.
The 2009 Aircraft Interiors Expo was extremely productive for SIE. Structural Integrity Engineering (SIE) has long experience with antenna installation design and certification on commercial, business and military aircraft. So at Hamburg, it was gratifying to see the broadband connectivity market reaching a level of growth and maturity where installations are going to ramp up and the broadband dream can be realized.”