How Does Airplane Wi-Fi Work?

It's perhaps the biggest luxury afforded to airlines passengers, especially to those of us stuck in coach. So, let’s pay homage to airplane Wi-Fi by pulling back the curtain and learning a little more about how this technology works to bring us all of our favorite content even at cruising altitudes. We’ll start with a quick Wi-Fi refresher and go from there.

What is Wi-Fi?

The term Wi-Fi simply means a wireless network. At home, you probably have a private Wi-Fi network (from your internet provider delivered via a router, modem or combo gateway) that brings connectivity to all your go-to devices like laptops, gaming consoles, smart assistants, wireless doorbells and beyond. In places like coffee shops and grocery stores, you likely have access to public Wi-Fi systems, which are simply wireless connections provided to you—usually for free—by a business or organization.

So, how does airplane Wi-Fi work?

While getting a signal on the ground makes perfect sense, how does it work in a commercial aircraft that’s bolting through the sky at cruising speeds of up to 575 miles per hour—tens of thousands of feet in the air? There are two ways:

Air-to-ground (ATG) network. With this type of network, the underside of the plane is equipped with antennas that connect with the closest tower on the ground. The signal goes to the cabin server, then to the on-board router, transforming the plane into a hotspot for passengers. The downsides of this method, however, are obvious: the plane has to be over land (or close to it) to work well. Sure, you may be able to do basic stuff like check an email or send an IM, but not much more, especially on international flights.
Satellite network. Like ATGs, this method also utilizes antennas, but they’re mounted on the top of the aircraft and they connect to a network of satellites (whichever satellite is closest) as the plane travels. The signal makes its way to the on-board server, through a Wi-Fi router and then to you. Satellite service uses both narrowband and broadband networks to give you full internet access. What narrowband lacks in its ability to accommodate steaming movies, playing video games, and the like, broadband somewhat makes up for.

Now that you know the basics about how airplane Wi-Fi works—your next question may be—how do I get it on my next flight? That depends on your airline! Most major carriers offer Wi-Fi, with more and more of them beginning to offer it for free (or free to loyalty members) as connectivity becomes more of a necessity these days than a luxury. Be sure to check with your airline ahead of time so you know what to expect.

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^Sources:

^{https://aviex.goflexair.com/flight-school-training-faq/commercial-plane-speeds}

^{https://www.airport-technology.com/features/how-does-wifi-work-on-a-plane}

^{https://www.rd.com/article/wifi-on-plane}^s

^{https://www.cnet.com/home/internet/how-to-get-wi-fi-on-a-plane-which-airlines-offer-it-free-and-which-will-charge-you}