SIA passenger claims charged RM3,920 for in-flight WiFi

SINAGPORE: A Singapore Airlines (SIA) passenger has claimed that he was charged about S$1,520 ( RM3,920) for using the Internet during his flight from London to Singapore on November 12.

Mr Jeremy Gutsche, CEO of online magazine Trendhunter. com, posted his bill on Twitter the next day, complaining about being “gouged” by the airline. He had subscribed for the 30MB Internet OnAir package at US$28.99 (RM97), but was charged an additional US$1142.47 for overuse.

An SIA spokesperson told TODAY: “Mr Gutsche has contacted us with his feedback and we are following up directly with him on the matter.”

Mr Gutsche wrote an article on his website about the incident. He claimed to have made only 155 page views, made some emails, and uploaded a 4MB powerpoint document during his entire f light.

He wrote: “I had an otherwise enjoyable f light, but the sticker shock of being gouged US$1,200 made me feel like I was deplaning from Total B****** Airlines, that old skit from SNL where they kick you off the plane with a ‘Buy BYE!’

“I wish I could blame an addiction to NetFlix or some intellectual documentary that made me US$1200 smarter. However, the Singapore Airlines Internet was painfully slow, so videos would be impossible and that means I didn’t get any smarter… except about how to charge a lot of money for stuff. I did learn that.

“At one point, I spent about an hour uploading one 4MB powerpoint doc. That doc probably cost me US$100 to upload, so I hope my team liked it. I actually even emailed them a warning that my upload was taking a while. That email probably cost me US$10. And yes, the pricing per MB was disclosed on sign-up, but I bought the US$30 package, slept through most the flight, and really didn’t think I’d end up a thousand bucks past the limit.”

According to the SIA website, the airline is progressively installing Wi-Fi throughout their Airbus A380 and Boeing 777-300ER fleets. Price plans are either volume based (e.g. US$9.99 for 10 MB) or time-based (e.g. US$11.95 for 1 hour).

When logging in, you must between t wo options: being automatically logged out once you’ve reached your data limit, or staying logged in even when exceeding your data limit.

How much does Wi-Fi cost on airline carriers from around the world?

The prevalance of smartphones, mobile hotspots and airport wifi means you can access the internet pretty much anywhere – that is, until you board a plane.

Some airlines now offer inflight Wi-Fi. But how much does it cost to stay connected at 40,000 feet in the air?

A Singapore Airlines (SIA) passenger said he racked up a Wi-Fi bill amounting to about S$1,520 during his f light from London to Singapore earlier this week, where he claimed to have only made 155 page views, sent some emails and uploaded a 4MB Powerpoint document during the entire f light.

Here are some airlines that offer in-f light Wi-Fi and their charges.

Air Canada: US$5 (RM16.74) for a one-hour pass, US$14 for 24 hours of internet access. Available on select flights within North America. doctor’s attention.

Those with family history of breast cancer are urged to start BSEs and mammograms earlier. Women leading unhealthy lifestyles like smoking, drinking alcohol and lack of exercise while those having early menstrual cycle or not having a child or having the first child late have a higher risk, she explained.

“Breast cancer is very common. It’s the number one female cancer in the world and all women have to be aware of it. It can happen to anyone, but it’s curable if caught early.

“The most common fear of having breast reconstruction is will it affect cancer recurrence detection. But if the cancerous lump is completely removed, recurrence is very low.”

Dr Esther has been performing breast reconstruction since 2006 but since the concept is still new to Malaysia, she only has a few Malaysian patients so far.

“Some are doubtful while some think it involves a massive operation but this is not true. However, it’s not suitable for those aged above 65 but that still depends on other factors.”

She pointed out that in Singapore of late, breast cancer was becoming increasingly common during pregnancy.

This is because women are delaying pregnancy for the first child until the age of 36, 37 and even 40 years.

She said the pregnancy hormone may help the cancer to grow faster.

“Treatment for breast cancer in pregnant woman is the same -- just have to time it properly. Chemotherapy is safe after the first trimester while surgery is safe after the second trimester. We avoid doing chemotherapy or surgery during t he third trimester.”

Dr Esther said girls who had their menstruation period very early were more exposed to the estrogen hormone, adding: “Women who get pregnant take nine months break f rom the hormone while those who breastfeed extend the break further. For breast-feeding, a minimum six months is needed to benefit from it but the longer the better.”

Unlike cervical cancer, there is currently no vaccine available for breast cancer. Only five per cent of breast cancer cases are due to genetics.

Based on the National Cancer Registry Report 2010, Malaysia recorded 4,846 new breast cancer cases annually while the probability of breast cancer for females aged 15 to 79 is 7.3 per cent in the same year.

In Sarawak, the commonest age for breast cancer is between 41 and 55 years, based on a Sarawak General Hospital Audit for Breast Cancer 2008-2012. Most patients seek medical help when the lump is between 2cm and 5cm.

Those interested in learning more about breast reconstruction can contact CanHOPE East Malaysia Kuching Regional office at No. 32, 1st Floor Mendu Commercial Centre, Jalan Mendu, Kuching, email to kuching @ canhope.org or call the hotline numbers, 012-8883778 or 0165752378.