Etihad Airways To Provide Over 100 Mbps Wi-Fi Across Its Fleet In 3 Years

Etihad Airways aims to provide more than 100 megabits per second Wi-Fi service in all of its aircraft in two to three years and is also considering introducing crypto payment solutions, its chief executive said.

Antonoaldo Neves, CEO of Etihad Airways, said there are multiple service providers and the Abu Dhabi-based carrier will select a solution soon.

“The connectivity that we're going to offer to our customers in the next two to three years is going to be best in class. With regard to speed, we're talking about getting to over 100 megabits per second, which is amazing. We have taken the decision to streamline everything, and we're going to be selecting a solution in two to three years will provide more than 100 megabits per second in all Etihad fleets,” Neves said.

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“There is no scenario that any airline in the world in three years will not have 100-plus megabits per second Wi-Fi in the aircraft . We got to give it to our customers because there is this saying that 'Wi-Fi is life' and people need it to feel connected and engaged. We're working very hard with that objective to provide our customers with 100-plus megabits per second in about two to three years. We're excited about this journey that we have ahead of us,” he said during a virtual conference with the local media as the airline reported a record first-half 2025 profits.

The UAE national carrier reported its strongest-ever half-year performance, delivering record profitability and passenger numbers in the first six months of 2025. Its profit after tax reached Dh1.1 billion during January-June 2025, a 32 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.

According to an analysis by network analytics firm Ookla, Hawaiin Airlines' inflight Wi-Fi achieves the best download speeds in the world, measuring a mediation of 161 megabits per second, while upload speed was also robust at a median of 20 megabits per second.

Among the other top 10 performers were Qatar Airways, Spirit Airlines, Air Canada, Breeze Airlines, American Airlines, Aeromexico, WestJet, and Virgin Atlantic.

During the media briefing, Etihad Airways' CEO confirmed that the airline is working on crypto payment solutions for its passengers.

“It's not the top priority for us right now, but it's natural. You have to get more currency types as means of payment,” he said.

In July 2025, Dubai carrier Emirates signed a deal with Crypto to explore ways to integrate a crypto payment solution within its systems. The integration is expected to take effect next year.

Emirates said the aim to roll out a digital currencies payment solution is to target and tap into younger, tech-savvy customer segments who prefer digital currencies.

In addition, Dubai Duty Free also signed a deal with Crypto last month to introduce crypto payment options for shoppers.

“We have been investing in technology to close the gap that we had in terms of payments. It's not only about acceptance, but it's also about payments... I believe that, in the very short term, we're going to be also accepting other currencies - Bitcoin and others,” he said.

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