Eastern Eye (UK)

Vistara first Indian carrier to offer in-flight wi-fi

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VISTARA, a joint venture of Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, has become the first Indian airline to offer in-flight wi-fi internet connectivi­ty to its passengers.

The airline started the service from last Friday (18) on its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner™ aircraft between Delhi and London Heathrow. The wi-fi service, which Vistara plans to also launch on its Airbus A321neo aircraft soon, is free of charge initially, for a limited period.

Passengers can access the internet on all wi-fi enabled mobile phones, tablets and laptops, courtesy of the in-flight wireless connectivi­ty by Panasonic Avionics.

The airline, brought to you by Tata and Singapore Airlines, will operate non-stop flights between Delhi and London till October 24, the company said.

The flights were launched on August 28 as part of the bilateral ‘transport bubble’ formed between India and the UK.

During the period, Vistara will fly three times a week between the two cities – on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

“We are delighted to offer onboard wi-fi internet connectivi­ty which takes our on-board travel experience to truly global standards. We are also glad to be the first

Indian carrier to be able to offer this service to our customers,” said Vinod Kannan, Vistara’s chief commercial officer. “We truly hope our customers enjoy this new addition as we continuous­ly strive to surpass their expectatio­ns.”

According to Vistara, the new In-Flight Entertainm­ent (IFE) system allows customers to access a library of nearly 700 hours of movies, TV shows and audio compilatio­ns and games.

The airline has introduced a food and beverage service in line with the latest health and safety norms. Aircraft interiors will be deep-cleaned after every flight using approved cleaning said the company.

Vistara CEO Leslie Thng said the company will increase the number of daily flights to 100 from 80 by the end of this month. Prior to the coronaviru­s pandemic, Vistara was operating more than 200 flights to 34 destinatio­ns every day.

Vistara commenced its commercial operations on January 9, 2015. It has a fleet of 43 aircraft, including 31 Airbus A320, one Airbus A321neo, six Boeing 737800NG, and two Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner™ aircraft, and has flown more than 20 million customers since starting operations.

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 ??  ?? NEW HEIGHTS: Vistara is a joint venture of Tata Group and Singapore Airlines
NEW HEIGHTS: Vistara is a joint venture of Tata Group and Singapore Airlines

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