Air Serbia kicks off public testing of new inflight internet and mobile services

Air Serbia, the national airline of the Republic of Serbia, today launches a seven-day public test phase of its new "Air Serbia Wi-Fly" inflight internet and mobile connectivity services, powered by the Panasonic Avionics Corporation.

From 1 October 2015, the connectivity service will be gradually deployed across the airline's fleet of Airbus A319 and A320 passenger aircraft, with the entire Airbus fleet expected to be fully connected by the end of Q1 2016.

As part of a successfully completed internal test onboard flight JU112 to Sarajevo, the first tweet from Air Serbia's official Twitter account was sent recently from the skies above Serbia. Following the test, Air Serbia extended the trial period on one of its Airbus aircraft during which members of the Serbian online and ICT community, and the airline's guests will get an opportunity to test the system for free for the first five days.

The first public testing will be conducted today on flight JU304 to Brussels, during which members of the Serbian online community and Air Serbia's on onboard guests will be given an opportunity to experience the new service. Guests on flights with duration longer than 1 hour and 20 minutes will be given a complimentary voucher for 30 minutes or 20 MB of internet access and they can provide feedback on their experience.

Assistance will be provided by Air Serbia's cabin crew, a Wi-Fly Ambassador and technicians from both Air Serbia and Panasonic Communication Services, who will explain the system in detail, help guests with their first-time access and answer their questions. In addition, the first tweet-up from the skies will take place during the flight which can be followed on Twitter using the hashtags #WiFly and#UPinTheAir.

Dane Kondić, Air Serbia's CEO, said: "Before we fully implement our new 'Air Serbia Wi-Fly' internet and mobile connectivity services, becoming the first airline in the region and one of few in Europe to offer the service, we are providing our guests the opportunity to thoroughly test the service to make sure that it provides a connectivity experience that is as close as possible to what our guests are used to at home or at work. The implementation phase will ensue immediately after the testing phase and the service will gradually become available across our entire Airbus fleet. We are excited to be able to perfect and very soon pioneer a new communications technology that will significantly enhance the travel experience of our guests".

The inflight connectivity suite includes Wi-Fi and mobile services, comprising the "Air Serbia Wi-Fly" solution, powered by the Panasonic Global Communications Suite (GCS).

Guests will be able to connect to the Air Serbia Wi-Fly network and enjoy broadband services on their Wi-Fi/WLAN enabled devices including smartphones, tablets and laptops, allowing them to write emails, surf the internet, update social media and much more, all from the comfort of their seat. Pricing for internet services will start at 4.90 EUR for 30-minute access (download limit 20 MB), 8.90 EUR for 60-minute access (download limit 50 MB) and 13.90 EUR for access throughout the duration of the flight (download limit 90 MB).

The mobile connectivity solution incorporates roaming agreements with other operators and can be accessed by guests through their roaming-enabled GSM mobile phones and smart phones to make and receive phone-calls, send and receive SMS messages and emails, and use mobile data services. Mobile telephone usage will be billed by the guest's mobile service providers based on applicable international roaming rates.