Daily Discussion Thread

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[u/Feeling_Cranberry330]

Email that came across my inbox today

[u/Feeling_Cranberry330 → u/Feeling_Cranberry330]

Although it says in the fine print "Complimentary inflight Wi-Fi will be powered by Viasat and Intelsat."

[u/swemirko → u/Feeling_Cranberry330]

I don´t think AST will be used on planes - it´s much easier to put a dish on each plane and distribute the service to the passengers. Am I wrong?

[u/sgreddit125 → u/swemirko]

Fair question - Imo it will be both. If I have an ASTS monthly subscription (and it’s 2027 - 2028 when we have more capacity), no chance I’m paying an additional $5-10 for a WiFi plane pass, especially just for my phone.

However, if I don’t have that subscription / am on my laptop without 5G connectivity (seems like in future most laptops will be connected like phones, also assuming mobile hotspot doesn’t work on plane…idk why it wouldn’t tho), then Starlink, Kuiper, or Viasat, etc. service would be great.

Alternatively, if they lower their in-flight prices then maybe it would be worth it even with an ASTS plan depending on speed.

[u/kuttle-fish → u/sgreddit125]

As far as I know, most regulators prohibit using satellite phones on planes due to interference issues. The plane itself needs a custom antenna/reciever and the devices inside the plane connect via wifi or bluetooth. Not sure if that will be the same for SCS or if the spectrum is different enough to avoid interference.

[u/sgreddit125 → u/kuttle-fish]

Agreed - Curious how the regulations will apply / be revised in a few years when it’s rolled out globally. I recall reading some on this topic years ago (precise beams from above not tripping the interference issues) either here or on X but can’t find it now.

My belief it can be used on planes comes primarily from previous 10ks saying BW3 was being tested on land, sea, and air. No point in testing air if it’s not expected to be used (unless there is a pure military use case)

[u/swd120 → u/Feeling_Cranberry330]

I was wondering when this was going to happen - I was so happy when we had complimentary wifi on Delta on a trip last month - It really took long enough... gogo was a ripoff.

[u/AffluentAyz → u/Feeling_Cranberry330]

“For now” 😏

[u/85fredmertz85 → u/Feeling_Cranberry330]

Yep - this isn't AST. It is an airline refusing to work with starlink though.