Ryanair launch in-flight mobile phone service

[Ronski]

Ryanair launch in-flight mobile phone service

Belfast Telegraph

Friday, 20 February 2009

Budget airline Ryanair yesterday launched Europe’s first fleet-wide in-flight mobile phone service allowing passengers to text and make calls from their own handsets.


State of the art technology has already been fitted on 20 of the carrier’s mainly Dublin-based aircraft as part of a six month trial - the first step in fitting out the entire fleet.

Ryanair boss Micheal O’Leary said he expects the service to be popular, particularly with teenagers and tourists looking to keep in touch while travelling.

"It’s your choice whether you want to use it or not," Mr O’Leary said.

"Certainly I think it will be very welcome for people who want to make and receive urgent or important calls.

"I think the big users here would be teenagers, people generally visiting friends and family."

Each plane will be fitted with a special antennae allowing the mobile phone or BlackBerry signal to be bounced via a satellite to the ground, where it is then routed to the networks.

The service, which is being provided by Swiss in-flight communications company OnAir, will initially be available to O2 and Vodafone customers as well as 50 other mobile phone operators across Europe.

Customers will be charged around 50 cents for text messages, between two and three euro per minute for a call, and one and two euro for smart phone email sessions, depending on your operator.

A charge will also be levied to receive a call, but not a text message.

A maximum of six people will be allowed to make calls at a time, although this is likely to increase.

Talks are ongoing with other mobile phone giants Meteor and 3, and the colourful airline chief urged parties to fast-track the negotiations.

"We’d urge 3 and Meteor to get up of your backsides and get the bloody thing done," Mr O’Leary said.

"Your customers are going to want to be able to use this service and they don’t want to be looking over feeling like some Johnny-come-lately like the O2 and Vodafone users are all texting or making calls."

Mr O’Leary declined to say how much Ryanair will make from the service, but claimed it was a small chunk compared to the slice taken by OnAir and the mobile phone operators.

But he admitted it would take a six-figure sum to fit out each aircraft with the technology.

"This ain’t cheap," Mr O’Leary said.

Around 50 aircraft will be upgraded over the six month trial period, with all 170 planes expected to be kitted out within 18 months.

"If for some remarkable reason it proves to be very unsuccessful then we may take a decision not to continue the roll out programme," Mr O’Leary said.

"But I think everywhere else in the world where people have been given the facility to use their mobile phones and Blackberrys it has proven to be remarkably successful."

The service will only be switched on after take off and disconnected before landing, to avoid the technology interfering with communications between the plane and ground control.

It can also be knocked off mid air if required, although the airline stressed the technology was safe to use in flight.

Mr O’Leary hit back at suggestions the service might annoy passengers looking for a bit of mobile-free time.

"There’s far to much old tosh talked about," he said.

"Oh it’s a dreadful sacrilege that we’ll be flying on an aircraft listening to people chatting on mobile phones. It would make a break from the in-flight announcements on Ryanair aircraft."

But he conceded it might lead to a rise in citizen journalism with people contacting news desks if something goes wrong mid flight.

"I think we’ll see a spike upwards in these nonsense articles in papers, that when there are relatively minor safety problems, passengers in fear of their lives calling directly to the newsdesks.

"All the usual old rubbish."

[Homer]

I see so called Ryanair is to charge you £1.00 for having to use the shiter sorry W.C. on the plane

[BASEL]

Yea, My Father was talking about it i cant see that SITTING well looooool

[Homer]

Yeh sitting alright way his leg's crossed, what's going to happen when people just pea in a empty bottle and say excuse me can you put this in the rubbish (meanwhile it's still warm) lol

Imagine if you didn't have any cash or method of payment ,do you think they will be a severe increase in minor accident's.