Holland America Line's pioneering use of SpaceX's Starlink technology on the Pinnacle Class ship Koningsdam in Alaska has garnered enthusiastic early feedback. This innovative move, implemented in April, has brought next-generation internet to both guests and crew on board.
Starlink, renowned for its Low Earth Orbit satellite technology, has enabled faster and more reliable Wi-Fi connectivity on a global scale. This development holds significant importance, particularly for Alaska's challenging maritime environment where conventional technology faces obstacles from weather conditions and geographical features like mountains.
President of Holland America Line, Gus Antorcha, emphasized the pivotal role of consistent connectivity for guests and crew, making it an integral aspect of the cruise experience. "For our guests and our team members, maintaining the connectivity they are accustomed to at home is an important part of the cruise experience," said Antorcha, "Added bandwidth means our guests can share the joys of exploring Alaska in real time and our team can stay in touch with their loved ones back home."
Since the installation, Koningsdam has embarked on remarkable voyages, including an 18-day cruise from Vancouver to Hawaii and 7-day Alaska Inside Passage voyages visiting Glacier Bay, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Skagway.
"While it's early in our usage, the feedback from guests and team members has been very positive so far," said Kathleen Erickson, vice president of technology for Holland America Line. "We're hearing from guests that emails and social media are performing well, and team members tell us that internet calls home to loved ones are much stronger. That's a connection that means a lot."
Jonathan Hofeller, VP of commercial sales for Starlink, expressed excitement about the strong initial results in Alaska. "High-speed, low-latency internet is critical to our modern lifestyle. We're excited that Holland America Line is seeing strong results in Alaska," said Hofeller, "And we look forward to helping Holland America Line and other Carnival Corporation ships continue to bring the connectivity experience for their guests and crew into the modern age."
Throughout the Summer, Koningsdam will showcase the Starlink internet capability across more than 20 voyages, connecting Vancouver with Alaska's picturesque ports. The company's future plans include extending this technology to additional ships in the coming year, with the ultimate goal of making Starlink available fleet-wide, ushering in a new era of maritime connectivity. Read more: Veteran SpaceX Falcon 9 Deploys Fleet of 21 Starlink V2 Satellites, Designed to Increase Internet Network Capabilities
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Featured Image Source: Holland America Line
About the Author
Evelyn Janeidy Arevalo
Evelyn J. Arevalo joined Tesmanian in 2019 to cover news as a Space Journalist and SpaceX Starbase Texas Correspondent. Evelyn is specialized in rocketry and space exploration. The main topics she covers are SpaceX and NASA.
