Operators proposed including satellite Internet in the price of air tickets

It is not specified what the cost of Internet on board will be. It will probably not be higher than that of foreign airlines, the publication writes. The Transport Ministry will consider introducing mandatory requirements for airlines to have access to the network by the end of 2024, the source said.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade will study the issue of equipping aircraft with equipment for Internet access at the stage of their creation, according to the draft instructions of First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Grigorenko. The project was the result of the digital forum “Space for People”, held at the Special Astrophysical Observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the village of Nizhny Arkhyz in the Karachay-Cherkessia Republic, Forbes writes.

According to Alexey Volin, general director of the Federal State Unitary Enterprise “Cosmic Communications”, participants in the satellite communications market propose to introduce the requirement to include network access in the ticket price. The Internet will be available not only on airplanes, but also on trains, as well as on river and sea ships.

It is proposed to set the price of Internet on board depending on traffic and the distance of the flight. For example, on a flight from Moscow to Vladivostok, the ticket for which costs 30,000 rubles, the price of Wi-Fi connection will be 5% of the ticket price, that is, no more than 1,500 rubles. This calculation is not definitive, the issue will be studied.