PASSENGERS of Singapore Airlines (SIA) are now able to keep their laptops off and their work productivity up - the airline is the first to deploy business software in its latest aircraft. SIA has incorporated Sun Microsystems' StarOffice software into the next-generation KrisWorld in-flight entertainment system found on its Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.

Sporting similar functions to Microsoft's Office productivity tools, StarOffice will allow travellers to work on word documents, spreadsheets and presentations as they soar through the skies without having to turn on their notebooks. 'With heightened security, access to laptops during flights can sometimes be restricted. The availability of StarOffice software, as part of KrisWorld, offers Singapore Airlines' customers the opportunity to work on and access their information in an open, secure and freely-available fashion independent of any vendor or file formats during their flights,' said Wong Heng Chew, managing director of Sun Microsystems Singapore.

'With StarOffice software supporting an increasing number of productivity file formats like Open Document Format and Microsoft Office, travellers can access such files through a single application with a USB storage device and even export documents in PDF format,' he added.

The first of SIA's new 777-300ER fleet was delivered last November and it entered service via the airline's Singapore-Paris route a month later. Currently, the aircraft flies to destinations like Paris, Zurich, Seoul, San Francisco, Milan, Barcelona and Hong Kong.

This article first appeared in BT on May 31, 2007