As the economy is gasping for air and airline prices continue to soar, Americans are looking for something to keep their spirits up. Well, what would boost your spirits more than jumping aboard an American Airlines flight and finding that you have access to Wi-Fi service? In the “coming weeks,” American Airlines is expected to roll out “tests of Wi-Fi services” on 15 jets that will run for as long as six months.
Details About Wi-Fi for In-flight Use
Many airlines are developing services that will allow for the use of Wi-Fi while aboard a flight, but American Airlines seems to have the biggest deployment of these services. In the coming weeks, American Airlines will equip around 15 jets with Wi-Fi services … and the cost for you? Pretty standard. They will charge roughly $12.95 for flights that are three or more hours, with prices varying for other flight durations.
So far, none of the U.S. carriers investing in Wi-Fi are expected to offer voice service. The data services that will be offered are strictly for e-mail, instant messaging and Web browsing. Voice service won’t be offered due to federal regulations prohibiting phone calls during flights, in addition to how annoying it would be to listen to your fellow passenger jabbing away on their cell phone when you are trying to catch shut-eye. Depending on the success of the data services, a voice option could be in the works for some airlines though.
Success Rates of In-Flight Wi-Fi
According to ComputerWorld, American ran a free “dress rehearsal” of Wi-Fi service on June 24 aboard a Boeing 767-200 during a round trip flight from New York’s JFK International Airport and LAX International Airport. American and Aircell (the in-flight Wi-Fi provider) said they were studying the results of the tests, and refused to give any information on how the service scored. But an Aircell spokeswoman said “customers were excited” about the service.
So this news is exciting for BlackBerry and iPhone users alike as they will be able to tap away on their handheld and have full access to e-mail and the Web. With airline costs so high, you’d think that airline services might offer Wi-Fi as a perk for people who paid for the $800 flight, but what do I know? Anyways, people are excited about this and I am too!
del.icio.us
digg 
Tags: Airlines and Wi-Fi, Airlines Wi-Fi Service, Blackberry, iPhone 3G, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Service on Airlines