Qantas, Optus Complete Wi-Fi Rollout

First class and business class customers may now enjoy complimentary Wi-Fi in the Qantas Club, as well as the Qantas First and Business Lounge, at 20 airports throughout Australia, Computerworld Australia reported today.

Partnering with Optus, the Wi-Fi rollout commenced at Sydney Airport’s T3 terminal last November and finished at Canberra Airport last month.

The free service is available to passengers at big city airports such as Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and Hobart at the domestic and international terminals. Should a Qantas Lounge passenger feel inclined to send an email or tweet from a regional spot – say, Alice Springs, Broome, Coffs Harbour, Launceston or Townsville – they’re in luck: the service is also offered across many of these airports.

In an effort to provide the “best experience” to passengers waiting for flights within these 40 lounges, Qantas Domestic Chief Executive Lyell Strambi was inclined to replace the previous provider, Telstra, with Optus. According to the Australian Business Traveller’s David Flynn, the move was a smart one:

“The speeds eclipse most home Internet connections, and are certainly among the zippiest airport lounge Internet feeds we've ever experienced,” he wrote. “It's all the sweeter compared to the slow and often not-even-working service which frequent flyers had to tolerate under the previous Qantas-Telstra lounge Internet partnership.”

Strambi has received a similar response:  “The feedback from Qantas Frequent Flyers and regular customers who have used Optus Wi-Fi in our lounges has been overwhelmingly positive,” said Strambi in a statement. "This provides customers with the highest quality Wi-Fi service, which is not matched by any other airline at Australian airports.”

Optus Business has secured a five-year contract with ICT services company Alphawest to be the primary internet provider at these airports.

“We’re excited to bring high speed Wi-Fi to Qantas Club lounges so that members can have a great online experience,” said John Paitaridis, Optus Business Managing Director, to IT Wire. “The growing popularity of Wi-Fi-enabled devices such as tablets means that travellers now expect to stay connected to the web at all times and remain productive when out of the office.”