The Indian Department of Telecommunications (DoT) announced a new rule for in-flight and maritime Wi-Fi connectivity recently. With the new rules, the government department has specified the criteria under which travellers will be allowed to access Internet connectivity. It is believed that with this rule change, Indian airlines such as Air India, Indigo, and SpiceJet might finally be able to offer the service to passengers travelling domestically. Notably, currently, only Vistara offers in-flight Wi-Fi to travellers on international flights.
DoT Announces Rule Change Regarding In-Flight Wi-Fi Connectivity
DoT India issued the rule change in an e-Gazette published on October 28. The rule amends the Flight and Maritime Connectivity Rules, 2018. Under rule 9, sub-rule (2) was changed to include, “Notwithstanding the minimum height in Indian airspace referred to in sub-rule (1), internet services through Wi-Fi in aircraft shall be made available when electronic devices are permitted to be used in the aircraft.”
Notably, the sub-rule (1) stated that aircraft in Indian airspace can offer passengers access to the Internet via Wi-Fi at a minimum altitude of 3,000 metres. This rule was added to avoid interference of in-flight connectivity with ground-based mobile and broadband connectivity.
It appears that the previous rule did not encourage airlines and network providers enough to provide the service to travellers. This could be due to the edge cases where despite attaining the prerequisite altitude, the in-flight network could still cause an issue for ground-based systems.
The DoT India highlighted that the new rule change shall be called the Flight and Maritime Connectivity (Amendment) Rules, 2024. Posting about the rule change, the official handle of the department on X (formerly known as Twitter) posted, “The Flight and Maritime Connectivity Rules have been amended to make internet connectivity available on flights via Wi-Fi.”
Among all Indian airlines, currently, only Vistara offers in-flight Wi-Fi to travellers on international flights. The service is available on the Boeing 787-9 Dreamlines and Airbus A321neo aircraft. The company offers 20 minutes of free Wi-Fi on select routes and to use additional Wi-Fi time, passengers are required pay a fee via credit or debit cards.