Virgin will put the equipped jets into service covering intercontinental flights between the Americas and the United Kingdom in the second half of this year.
Virgin Atlantic has selected Viasat’s in-flight connectivity (IFC) solution for its new Airbus A330-900 aircraft.
Viasat’s IFC system will enable high-quality, full video streaming, browsing, messaging, social media scrolling and more to every connected device on the aircraft, operating with a level of connectivity made possible through the company’s satellite network capacity.
The Viasat IFC equipment will be factory-installed (“linefit”) on the 16 new Virgin Atlantic Airbus A330-900s at the Airbus Center of Excellence production site in Toulouse, France, ensuring in-flight internet service is available on each aircraft upon delivery. Virgin Atlantic’s fleet of Airbus A330-900s is scheduled to enter service with intercontinental flights between the Americas and the United Kingdom in the second half of this year.
Viasat’s internet experience on Virgin Atlantic’s new fleet will be enabled, in part, by two factors: industry-leading capacity across Viasat’s planned global satellite network and the company’s ability to leverage that capacity efficiently.
Speaking about the deal, Don Buchman, Viasat’s Vice President and General Manager of Commercial Aviation, said: “We’re thrilled that Virgin Atlantic an airline with innovation and customer service at its core — has chosen Viasat as its IFC partner on its new Airbus aircraft. We have a strong history of delivering quality IFC on long-haul flights and look forward to bringing our technology and service capabilities to Virgin Atlantic and its customers.”
Viasat’s onboard equipment on Virgin Atlantic’s new aircraft is designed to be forward-compatible with the company’s next-generation satellite constellation, ViaSat-3, offering Virgin Atlantic additional capacity and expanded global coverage.
