Govt Clears Rules for Inflight WIFI Connectivity

There is no need to wait for WIFI in and over Indian space now. Aviation secretary RN Choubey said TOI that the department of telecom (DoT) notified rules for inflight connectivity (IFC) on Friday.

Now the interested parties wanting to provide IFC can apply to DoT for grant of license. These parties can, in turn, be the service provider for airlines wishing to give onboard WiFi for flights to, from and within India.

Almost all big telecom players like Airtel and Jio are interested in entering this space.

Among Indian carriers, SpiceJet says its Boeing 737 Max is equipped with SatCom which will enable internet onboard services as soon as regulatory and government approves.

Foreign airlines like Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, and Emirates have had onboard WiFi long before but have had to switch them off when their aircraft are in Indian airspace.

Recently even a new airline, Air Italy, which is owned 49% by Qatar Airways, said it has to do the same in Indian airspace.

DoT has notified the final rules almost 11 months after Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) issued its recommendations on IFC.