We’ve covered this topic on multiple occasions and, well, today the service is going live for the masses on AA. The Boeing 767-200 aircrafts in AA’s fleet flying from NYC to LA, Miami and San Francisco will have the service flipped on and we’ll be on a flight from JFK to LAX today. Pricing will be $12.95 for flights with a duration of over three hours. Check back at noon EDT for a live blog/review of the service. → Read More
It’s the dawning of a new age, folks. In-flight Wi-Fi is slowly rolling out across domestic airlines in the US and Delta is looking to capitalize on it by outfitting their entire domestic fleet of aircrafts with Aircell’s GoGo service. American Airlines and Virgin America have been on-board for some time (though they have yet to launch the service) and this is pretty big news coming from an airline that’s been struggling lately. Having filed for bankruptcy on more than one occasion in recent years, Delta is positioning itself to get back on top of the domestic heap. In April they announced a merger with Northwest Airlines that would make them the largest domestic carrier in the country and the addition of in-flight Wi-Fi makes them even more enticing for would be travelers. The first half of 2009 will see 133 of Delta’s MD88/90 airplanes equipped with the service with another 200 Boeing 737, 757 and 767-300s to follow suit. Delta hopes to have more than 330 airplanes equipped to provide the Wi-Fi service by the end of 2009 making it the only major US airline to offer the service across its entire domestic fleet. GoGo will cost Delta flyers $9.95 on flights of three hours or less, and $12.95 for flights that are longer than three hours. → Read More
This is certainly big news and it’s coming from an airline that’s been hampered with bankruptcy problems in recent years, but things are looking up for Delta. In April they announced that NW Airlines would be absorbed into the fold to become the world’s largest carrier and today they’ve announced that their entire domestic fleet will offer broadband Wi-Fi by the end of 2009. The first half of 2009 will see 133 of Delta’s MD88/90 flying contraptions outfitted with the service with another 200 Boeing 737, 757 and 767-300s to follow suit. Delta hopes to have more than 330 airplanes equipped to provide the Wi-Fi service by the end of 2009. GoGo will cost Delta flyers $9.95 on flights of three hours or less, and $12.95 for flights that are longer than three hours. → Read More
American Airlines is quite possibly the most horrendous airline on the face of the planet. I’m waiting for my flight to LA at Gate 12 in JFK. I was supposed to leave at 7:15 ET, but it’s been pushed out to 7:50 ET. So feel free to swing by and say hello and possibly buy me a beer. Although, I don’t see a bar anywhere around. I’m just keeping my fingers crossed that my flight has Aircell’s GoGo service. Big ups to Samsung for providing me with a Mobile Charging Station! *Why am I not taking Virgin America?* → Read More
http://services.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f8/452319854 We’ve been a huge proponent of Aircell’s GoGo service for months now and we’re tickled pink to learn that GoGo will finally be launching sometime next month with American Air. I’m extremely jealous that Walt got to test out the service before all of us, but that’s just the way these things work out and it makes me sad. Oh well. Anyway, Mossberg took a test flight from San Francisco to Aircell’s home base in Colorado to test out the service. He averaged 500-600Kbps down and 300Kbps up, which isn’t blazing fast, but good enough if you ask me. It is on a plane and most of us haven’t been privy to such frivolous things in the past. Pricing is set $12.95 for flights over three hours and there’s also a flat-rate of $9.95. Also, we’ve already known this for some time, but I just wanted to reiterate the fact that Aircell’s service will not allow VoIP calls or any calls in general, so don’t think you’ll be chatting away on your transcontinental flights. Oh, you probably want to know which cities will get first dibs on the service, don’t you? Flights going in and out of New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Miami on Boeing 767s will get first crack. Virgin America will follow suit across their entire fleet later in the year. You might wonder about those test speeds and say that it will bomb once everyone and their mother logs on, but Aircell claims that Mossberg’s test flight directly portrays what others will soon experience. He was logged onto the service with eight laptops and six Wi-Fi-enabled handsets. In case you were wondering. → Read More
Aircell, those guys who want to put WiFi on airplanes across the country, finally received the FAA certifications it needed to start building its equipment into airplanes proper. It recently finished its nationwide network of transponders that would bounce the signals up to the airplane, and with this last hurdle out of the way, we could conceivably start seeing WiFi-equipped aircraft this year. Good news for those of us who travel often. → Read More
Aircell announced today the completion of the GoGo network. We’re stoked on this because it means unadulterated (no VoIP) in-flight Wi-Fi. American Airlines recently installed the Aircell ATG system on one their Boeing 767-200 planes. It’s currently being tested and should deploy throughout the fleet sometime this year. Virgin America is also slated to roll out the Aircell service this year. We’re all very exciting and waiting patiently for the service to roll out. → Read More
Airline fares? Yeah, I’m telling you about discount fares on Virgin America because it’s the geekiest domestic airline out there right now. No need to use SeatGuru to find out which seats have outlets because every seat on VA has an outlet. RED is a pretty badass in-flight entertainment suite considering you don’t have to pay for it like you would on other airlines. Oh, and wait until AirCell’s in-flight Wi-Fi service is up and running on VA and you’ll never want to fly anyone else. Well, what are you waiting for? You could be waiting for them to open up shop in your area, which is understandable. I’ll let it slide for now. If you live in SD, SF, LA, LV, SEA*, DC or NYC just be sure to book by 2/22 and fly by 5/21. *Service to and from Seattle doesn’t start till next month. Virgin America → Read More
Today Continental announced that they will be offering Wi-Fi, but it will be the same crippled mess that you’ll find on JetBlue. It’s not all bad, though. The agreement with LiveTV will also bring 36 channels of live TV directly to your seat via DirecTV. First-class passengers will receive the service (TV) for free while passengers in economy-class will have to muster up $6. The Wi-Fi service I just mentioned will be free. It’s free because it sucks. I’ll wait for AirCell’s service on American or Virgin America. Press Release → Read More
Aircell air-to-ground antenna being installed on the Boeing in KC. Last week Aircell successfully installed their Internet Broadband Connectivity Solution at AA’s Kansas City maintenance facility. The Boeing 767-200 will begin beta testing over the next few weeks pending FAA certifications. The air-to-ground broadband system will provide you with hours of enjoyment provided you take a fancy to LOL Cats, porn without sound or CrunchGear. That’s a tough choice, I know. → Read More
The Wall Street Journal reported Colorado-based aeronautical communications company, AirCell, will be able to bring WiFi access to airplanes soon. The service will be carried over the frequency once used for air-phone service, which the company bought last year for $31.3 million at FCC auction. The connection will provide internet bandwidth equivalent to WiFi on the ground for devices including laptops and cell phones for no more than $10 a day, but will block VOIP services like Skype. Airlines have tried this before. Boeing launched their own in-flight internet service, Connexion, only to have it go belly up last year. Michael Arrington over at TechCrunch had tried out the service in July 2005 during a flight to Europe. Connexion was different from what AirCell has planned. It cost $30 for transcontinental service, allowed VOIP, and tranmitted data via satellite. AirCell is taking a terrestrial approach, transmitting data from a plane to a collection of 80 towers (expanding to 100). AirCell’s required 100 pounds of electronics can be installed overnight for about $100,000. Airlines will recoup costs through revenue sharing with AirCell. → Read More
