Telecommunication in Emirates

OnAir (telecommunications)

OnAir is a company that enables airline and cruise ship passengers to use their mobile phones and laptops for calls, text messaging, emails and Internet browsing. By May 2014, OnAir’s services were available in over 60 countries; used by 22 airlines flying over five continents.

Services[edit]

OnAir offers three services which aircraft operators can order together or separately:

• Internet OnAir is a Wi-Fi network which offers Internet access at broadband speed to passengers.^[2]
• Mobile OnAir is a cellphone service which offers mobile telephony, SMS and narrowband Internet access (56 kbit/s) and so allows passengers to make and receive calls on their mobile phones, send and receive text messages and emails and use the Internet. Airlines can restrict usage of these services at discretion enabling them to ban voice calls and allow only SMS and Internet access instead. Lufthansa is one airline following this restrictive approach due to passengers' alleged desire for quiet during flights.^[3]
• Link OnAir' is a managed network service that allows airlines to use the IP-based satellite connection used by the aforementioned services for other applications, such as supplying in-flight entertainment systems with news content or Internet access and providing mission-critical information and communication services to air crews.^[4]
• OnAir Play' combines inflight connectivity with films, TV, live news, music, games, magazines and newspapers. Passengers have access to a full range of content including live news and sport, updated throughout the flight and can buy destination-based goods and services to ease their arrival.^[5]

Telecommunication in Emirates

We've made it easier for you to stay in touch with friends, family and colleagues when you fly. Connect to our onboard Wi-Fi, make a call on your mobile or use our in-seat phone. Check the Services by Flight tool to see which communications services are on your flight.

Wi-Fi in the sky:

It’s free to blog, post or tweet from your seat on nearly all our A380 aircraft. Enjoy 10MB of data free (that’s enough to search, send emails and update Facebook). Or pay just USD 1 and enjoy 500MB. You can also pay USD 1 to get online on select Boeing 777s*. We’re rolling this service out across our fleet, so soon you can connect on even more of our flights.

In-seat phone, SMS and email:

Use the in-seat satellite phone to stay in touch with home or your office, or use it to call other people on your flight. You can also send messages using our onscreen SMS and email services.

Mobile phone and data roaming:

Make calls on your mobile just as you would when you’re on the ground. You can use your mobile on over 300 flights a day, including nearly all of our A380 flights. You can also connect to the internet using our GPRS/EDGE services on select A380s and Boeing 777s.

Seat-to-seat messaging:

Send an on screen text message to your friends or family from your seat to theirs.

Visit places you won’t find on a map:

Fall in love with a classic romance. Lose yourself in the latest edge-of-the-seat thriller. Let our inflight entertainment take you to places you won’t find on a map. 

Choose from over 2,000 channels of movies, TV shows, music and games, on demand and in multiple languages. On ice Digital Widescreen, we have movies with Audio Description and Closed Captions if you’re hearing or visually impaired. 

Create your personal playlist of favorites, and laugh, shed a tear or cheer your way to your destination.

http://www.emirates.com/english/flying/inflight_entertainment/communication.aspx