Passengers complain that airplane WiFi cannot connect to the internet. How long will it take for the in-flight internet to explode?
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The "Guidelines for the Assessment of the Use of Portable Electronic Devices (PEDs) on Board" issued by the Civil Aviation Administration of China was like a spring thunder, triggering a race among major airlines to "turn on mobile phones in the air". As of 20:00 on January 18, 10 airlines have announced a timetable for lifting the ban on the use of mobile phones on board. The first batch of passengers who tried the service had landed in the early morning of January 18. However, some passengers were disappointed with the experience: they could not connect to the Internet, or they could connect but could not watch videos, which became the "complaint" of the passengers' in-flight WiFi experience. This is related to the technology currently used. China Telecom said that as the only domestic basic telecommunications operator with a satellite mobile communications license, it uses Ku satellite communications technology to provide Internet access services for passengers. However, many experts told reporters that traditional Ku satellite technology cannot meet the needs of passengers for high-speed Internet access and faces upgrading. High-throughput satellites will become a "savior." It will be difficult to watch blockbuster movies online in 5 years "Today, China Eastern Airlines' broadcast message has indeed been changed to 'The plane is about to take off, please switch your phone to flight mode'. It no longer requires forced shutdown... This is a small step forward for Chinese aviation." On the afternoon of the 18th, a netizen posted a message on a social platform with the location of Shanghai Hongqiao Airport. Many passengers are excited to use their mobile phones on the plane, but after experiencing it, the Internet speed issue has also become a focus of attention. "I was very surprised at first, but now I am very disappointed." On the morning of January 18, a passenger expressed his experience to the reporter of The Paper. China Eastern Airlines told reporters that the size of its in-flight Internet fleet that can provide in-flight WiFi services has reached 74 aircraft, covering all international long-distance routes and 166 key domestic business routes. According to the experience report of The Paper, the WiFi service provided by China Eastern Airlines is free for trial, but there are only 100 places per flight and application is required in advance. Why is the Internet speed still poor despite the limited quota? This is related to the communication technology currently used by domestic airlines. Many experts told reporters that the technical paths of in-flight WiFi are roughly divided into two types: ATG (ground-to-air) and satellite communication. China mostly uses satellite communication. However, the satellites currently connected to Chinese civil aviation aircraft were not designed for large-scale communications at the beginning of launch. The antenna diameter of the aircraft is small, and the satellite resources are limited and the bandwidth carrying capacity is low. "At present, the functions that can basically be realized by the bandwidth rate of aircraft WiFi are key applications such as payment and interaction. Within five years, operations such as watching videos and reading e-books on mobile phones on airplanes will still be achieved through the 'local area network' on the airplane." Xie Ying, chief engineer of Shenzhen Avionics Technology Research Institute and vice president of Shenzhen Donica Electronic Technology Co., Ltd., told reporters. High-throughput satellites will become the "savior". Xie Ying introduced that the high-throughput Ku satellite will be launched in 2019. Duan Shiping, CEO of Feitian United (Beijing) System Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Feitian United), a complete aircraft WiFi system provider in which Huihuang Technology (002296, SZ) holds a stake, said in an exclusive interview with reporters that the system capacity of high-throughput Ku satellites is many times higher than that of traditional Ku, but it has only been tested in some overseas aviation. More satellites needed for in-flight internet boom Information provided by China Telecom shows that as the only basic telecommunications operator with a satellite mobile communications license, it uses the world-leading Ku satellite communications technology to provide Internet services to passengers. However, Duan Shiping previously stated that the traditional Ku technology currently used in China is difficult to meet usage needs. "The traditional Ku technology has a very narrow bandwidth. Once the number of passengers using the system increases, the experience drops rapidly. We believe that traditional Ku is not a system suitable for long-term development." "With the full implementation of the policy of allowing mobile phones in the cabin, China Telecom will accelerate the deployment of high-throughput satellite (HTS) networks and upgrades of integrated business operation platforms to provide passengers with safer, faster and more economical cabin broadband Internet access services," China Telecom told reporters. There has been a debate in the industry about whether to use the Ka band or the Ku band in satellite communication technology. A person from China Telecom told reporters that it will use high-throughput Ku technology in the future. However, there are also views in the industry that Ka satellites will gradually replace the current Ku satellites to provide network services for aircraft due to their advantages such as higher bandwidth capabilities, wider network coverage, and lower bandwidth costs. Xie Ying believes that the development of high-throughput Ka technology will not force the development of Ku technology into a dead end. "Ku currently has a large number of broadcasting and television services and has limited capacity. Ka is a virgin land that has just begun to develop and has a bright future. Ku's future cannot compare to Ka, but Ku will not die." This is not unrelated to cost. "The launch costs of high-throughput Ka and high-throughput Ku are similar. Assuming that high-throughput Ku costs $200 million to launch one satellite, high-throughput Ka with large capacity will cost $400 million to $600 million, which increases the cost by 1 to 2 times, but the bandwidth capacity increases by dozens to hundreds of times, achieving a much higher bandwidth cost-effectiveness. We believe that only when we reach the high-throughput Ka stage can we bring about a revolution in the in-flight Internet industry or an explosion of the industry," Duan Shiping once told reporters. As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity. |
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