东航官宣Wi-Fi免费，空中上网免费时代即将到来

Starting from October 11th, China Eastern Airlines has made Wi-Fi on all wide - body aircraft of its domestic "Air Express" completely free, covering all economy class seats. This marks China Eastern Airlines as the first domestic airline to widely offer free Wi-Fi services, breaking the convention that free Wi-Fi on domestic airlines was exclusive to premium classes.

Previously, China Eastern's free Wi-Fi was only available to passengers in first class, business class, premium economy class, and designated economy class seats on domestic "Air Express" flights. From now on, regardless of whether passengers are in first class, business class, or economy class on the wide - body aircraft of domestic "Air Express", they can use Wi-Fi for free throughout the flight for cloud - based office work, shopping, or entertainment.

In 2023, we were amazed by the ability to watch live broadcasts at an altitude of ten thousand meters. In 2024, the removal of the 3000 - meter restriction for in - flight internet access and the transformation from frequent Wi-Fi disconnections to seamless connectivity turned in - flight Wi-Fi from a "luxury item" to a "daily necessity".

In 2025, there is another major breakthrough in the bustling high - altitude environment: the era of free in - flight Wi-Fi for all is coming!

China Eastern Airlines Leads the Way in Offering Wi-Fi for Free on a Large Scale

China Eastern's free Wi-Fi on wide - body aircraft covers 37 "Air Express" routes, including flights between Shanghai Hongqiao and Beijing Capital, Shanghai Hongqiao and Guangzhou, and Shanghai Hongqiao and Shenzhen, which are popular among business travelers. These routes account for 70% of the airline's total domestic wide - body flights. As of now, 110 wide - body aircraft of China Eastern Airlines are equipped with Wi-Fi, and all of them are now offering free access.

The free Wi-Fi is a basic service that supports basic needs such as web browsing, instant messaging, online office work, and email handling. If passengers need a faster and more diverse network experience, as well as entertainment services like audio and video, they can pay to upgrade to the standard or premium in - flight Wi-Fi service.

After China Eastern Airlines officially announced free Wi-Fi for all classes, how will the original annual card members' services continue? According to a reporter from IT Times, the original annual card members were provided with the standard service, enjoying the same Wi-Fi experience as first - class and business - class passengers.

For ordinary passengers, the original full - flight Wi-Fi service of China Eastern Airlines cost 50 yuan. Now, passengers with entertainment needs can pay 30 yuan to upgrade from the free basic version to the standard version.

Is the Era of Free In - Flight Internet Access Coming?

Globally, free in - flight internet access is becoming a trend.

Turkish Airlines plans to offer free Wi-Fi on all its aircraft by the end of 2025. Emirates Airlines has already provided free Wi-Fi in first class and business class and is gradually expanding it to economy class. Previously, only passengers in first class, business class, and diamond card members of Cathay Pacific could use in - flight Wi-Fi for free. Since November 2025, the free internet access has been extended to gold card members and above. The prerequisite for achieving this goal is large - scale coverage, and Cathay Pacific has installed in - flight Wi-Fi on over 90% of its aircraft models.

Domestically, China Eastern Airlines is the first to offer free Wi-Fi for all classes on a large scale, covering 110 wide - body aircraft, and economy class passengers can also use it for free. Air China also offers free Wi-Fi in economy class, but currently, it only covers about 30 aircraft, including both domestic and international flights, with a relatively small scale. China Southern Airlines has only equipped more than 30 aircraft with in - flight Wi-Fi, and it is only free for business class passengers. Xiamen Airlines only provides free full - flight internet access for first - class passengers, while business - class passengers can only enjoy free internet access for a limited time. Hainan Airlines provides low - speed network connectivity for business - class passengers, which can meet the need to post text on social media.

In the past, the focus of competition among airlines was on flight frequency and price. However, as seen during the just - passed National Day and Mid - Autumn Festival holiday, when price competition is no longer sustainable, airlines are seeking differentiated competition models.

"In the paid era, airlines regarded in - flight internet access as an optional service rather than a must - have. Now, global airlines are promoting the transition from paid to free in - flight internet access. Whether an aircraft can provide internet access is a necessary basic service, not an additional one," said Zhang Chi, the general manager of Air - Ground Interconnection, the in - flight Wi-Fi service provider for China Eastern Airlines. "Airlines are shifting from simple scale competition to resource competition, from competing on price to competing on service."

In 2014, the first internet - enabled flight in the history of Chinese civil aviation was successfully tested, marking the beginning of the in - flight internet era in China. Over the past decade, the debate on whether in - flight internet access should be free has never stopped.

In Zhang Chi's view, the industry now has a new understanding of the value of network connectivity. As business travelers gradually get used to staying online at all times, the basic Wi-Fi service can better drive ticket sales and create value.

The Integration of High - and Low - Orbit Satellites Becomes a Trend

In August 2023, Air - Ground Interconnection first overcame technical limitations, enabling Wi-Fi access from take - off to landing. It helped China Eastern Airlines become the first domestic airline to keep in - flight Wi-Fi service open below 3000 meters, ensuring that passengers "stay connected throughout the flight" at high altitudes.

In 2025, there was a major breakthrough in the experiment of connecting domestic large aircraft to the Chinese network. "We are actively promoting the installation of in - flight Wi-Fi on narrow - body aircraft (small planes)," Zhang Chi revealed to a reporter from IT Times. "Domestic large aircraft are expected to become a 'new model' for in - flight internet access on Chinese narrow - body aircraft."

Zhang Chi is an experienced professional in in - flight Wi-Fi. He once led China Eastern's in - flight Wi-Fi project. He remembers that China Eastern tested the ATG (Air - to - Ground broadband communication) mode in 2012 and 2013, but progress was slow due to technical and policy reasons. Although the ATG mode has lower costs and sufficient bandwidth compared to satellite communication, ground base stations cannot cover areas such as oceans and deserts, making it impossible to provide in - flight Wi-Fi for trans - oceanic flights.

Therefore, the satellite mode has become the mainstream. Currently, domestic airlines mainly use high - orbit satellites for in - flight Wi-Fi. For example, Air - Ground Interconnection accounts for about 90% of the bandwidth usage in the aviation field of the high - throughput satellite AsiaSat 6D.

In recent years, the focus of the space race has shifted from high - orbit to low - orbit satellites. Elon Musk's Starlink has more than 8100 satellites in orbit, making it the constellation project with the largest number of in - orbit satellites, the highest launch frequency, and the largest scale globally.

Abroad, Starlink under Elon Musk has rapidly penetrated the aviation field. Although Starlink entered the aviation market in early 2024, it already has orders for thousands of aircraft. Zhang Chi recalled that in May 2024, Starlink participated in the Hamburg Aviation Exhibition in a low - key manner, with an unremarkable booth and only two staff members for reception and explanation. In April this year, Starlink's booth was still low - key, but it was crowded with people.

United Airlines (hereinafter referred to as "United") has signed a large - scale cooperation agreement with SpaceX to install the Starlink system on more than 1000 passenger aircraft. It will start providing free internet access from the second half of 2025 and plans to cover its entire fleet by the end of 2025. After registering as a Mileage Plus member, United passengers can use the Starlink wireless network for free to browse the web, play videos, play games, and even conduct limited video conferences, but they need to wear headphones to listen to audio to avoid disturbing other passengers.

Image source: United Airlines

In Zhang Chi's view, although the "Chinese version of Starlink" has not completed large - scale networking and continuous coverage, domestic low - orbit satellites are developing at a high speed. The integration of high - and low - orbit satellites for in - flight Wi-Fi is an inevitable trend, but there are still some technical difficulties to overcome. "The challenge with high - orbit satellites is signal gain because of the long distance and weak signal. The difficulty with low - orbit satellites is that they move faster than aircraft, which places higher requirements on the management accuracy and response speed of the in - flight system."

In - flight internet access is moving from paid to free, from high - orbit satellites to the integration of high - and low - orbit satellites, and from being an 'isolated island in the air' to 'always connected'.

Images / Air - Ground Interconnection   United Airlines

This article is from the WeChat official account "IT Times", author: Sun Yan. Republished by 36Kr with permission.