This week at Aviation Festival in London, Arkefly Managing Director Hans van de Velde gave a keynote outlining the success of the TUI Cloud streaming IFE pilot program (using passenger’s own devices) which was fully deployed across the Arkefly fleet in an astonishing 12 weeks.
At the conference he also hinted that the entire TUI family of 140 active aircraft (comprising the fleets of Thomson Airways, TUIfly, Arkefly TUI Nordics and Jetairfly) might also be on a fast track to implement TUI Cloud – supported by the AirFi battery-powered Wi-Fi box – as part of the “One Aviation” carrier consolidation project underway within TUI Group.
“It took us literally two minutes to convince our board last week, Wednesday, that this is a very quick and easy solution,” he told delegates.
In a special Q&A interview designed for press distribution, van de Velde speaks candidly about the rapid deployment schedule, program logistics, early passenger usage data, plans for monetization, impact on crew, improvements in onboard service, Phase Two of the rollout, ongoing trials and how he thinks the AirFi box and TUI Cloud can create a harmonized passenger experience across Arkefly’s mixed fleet.
“We definitely want, within all TUI Group airlines, to harmonize the inflight experience as much as we can,” he reveals. “The rest of the group is watching closely, because at the end of this year we need to have a group-wide strategy in place to harmonize the On-Board Customer Experience.”
About AirFi
AirFi is part of MI Airline. MI Airline brings innovations to the cabin offering the unique platforms “AirFi” and “Connected Crew” designed especially for airlines to effectively and securely bridge the information gap between the company and its remote staff and passengers.
MI Airline is supported by Mainport Innovation Fund, founded by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Schiphol Group, Delft University of Technology and Rabobank. www.airfibox.com
About Arkefly
Arkefly is TUI Nederlands own airline and part of the extensive TUI international fleet. Arkefly’s Dutch fleet includes the Boeing 767-300, the 737-800 and the 787 Dreamliner. Arkefly flies to more than 55 holiday destinations on five continents. www.arke.nl
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