Mumbai airport first to provide free Wi-Fi connectivity

Mumbai: Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) on Monday became the first international airport in India to launch a free wireless network service. The service went live with the Mumbai International Airport Private Limited (MIAL), CSIA's operator, activating an enterprise-class Wi-Fi service throughout the domestic (IA and IB) and international (2A and 2C) terminals. MIAL is a joint venture between the GVK-SA consortium and the Airports Authority of India.

So far, CSIA had been offering a prepaid Wi-Fi service, the same as with Chennai airport. New Delhi airport is due to have Wi-Fi connectivity from the next month

With the service accessible on all Wi-Fi enabled laptops now, the CSIA now joins other major international airports like Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok, Las Vegas's McCarran and Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur International Airport in offering similar service.

Mobile service provider Bharti Airtel Ltd, which is powering the service, is offering wall-to-wall accessibility throughout the airport's four terminals. That means only bona-fide passengers inside the terminal building will be able to take advantage of the facility. To prevent potential misuse, each session would be valid for about four hours.

According to Bharati, the log-in process is a very simple one and does not require users to install or use proprietary software. The facility is also available on other hand-held devices such as pocket PCs, smart phones, mobile phones, gaming devices and PDAs.

According to MIAL sources, the speed of the service will vary between 64 kbps and 128 kbps, depending on the number of simultaneous users, but will never dip below 64 kbps. While this service is being offered free of charge to all passengers carrying Wi-Fi enabled laptops, a paid service for a bandwidth of 512 kbps and above, will also be introduced shortly.

Free Internet kiosks will be set up at all terminals, and each terminal will have at least one kiosk with a minimum of four computers.

Meanwhile in a release, G V Sanjay Reddy, managing director, MIAL, said, "We are pleased to be the first airport in India to provide wireless coverage of this nature to passengers. Wi-Fi connectivity and the free Internet kiosks will facilitate better communication access for travellers to CSIA. This initiative would help us enhance passengers' experience and is in line with our commitment to making CSIA a world class airport."

"At Airtel, we have always been driven by a vision to offer futuristic products and to make mobility a way  of life for all our customers. Our engagement with MIAL is a significant milestone in partnering to help passengers stay connected at India's busiest airport," said David Nishball, president, enterprise services, Bharti Airtel.