Biman Bangladesh Airlines, the national flag carrier, has been allowed to provide in-flight phone and Internet services.
The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) approved these facilities for Biman at a commission meeting in June. It, however, imposed five conditions in this respect and expected that the service to be launched from September this year.
These conditions are: Biman will have to provide the services only after getting at a height of 6,000 metres or more from the land; the service charge will be adjusted through billing with local mobile operators; no terrestrial network should be interfered with; the service must be closed during the take off and landing; and Biman Bangladesh Airlines will have to pay the BTRC USD 2,000 per year for such services inside Bangladesh territory.
Telecom operators have said that it may take some time to provide the facilities to Biman due to billing adjustments.
A top telecom operator said it did not get any instructions from the BTRC in this regard. The operator, however, mentioned that it would be ready to cooperate, if necessary.
The minister for posts, telecommunications and ICT, Mustafa Jabbar, said in-flight phone and Internet facilities would be a milestone in the country's aviation history.
He congratulated both the airlines and the BTRC for this.
The BTRC has already allocated 4 MHz spectrum of 1900 and 2100 band of 3G to Biman.
Acting chairman of BTRC Zahurul Haque said the commission already directed the Department of Spectrum to implement the facilities as soon as possible.
Biman will give 20 megabyte of free data to every passenger for using their mobile phones or any other devices or monitors, said Biman general manager Shakil Meraj.
Biman is receiving four new Dreamliners and the first one will join its fleet in August this year, he added.
All Dreamliner aircraft will offer in-flight mobile and Internet service. Biman is yet to fix the tariff to be levied on phone calls or the price for additional data consumption.
“The service will brighten the image of the national flag carrier,” said Shakil Meraj.
According to a joint presentation of Biman and Panasonic Aviation, the national carrier will set up a base station in every aircraft to ensure backhaul connectivity in order to allow passengers to use the Internet and make phone calls.
