Many passengers will say that in-flight entertainment and internet services are important to the overall travel experience, but it is not all that common to hear an airline executive be particularly blunt about the shortcomings that carrier sees in the offerings available. Thanks to Alaska Airlines we’ve got at least one version of that view, […]
About Delta’s narrow-body fleet “enhancements”
Look for 225 Delta narrow-body aircraft to see updates over the next three years. The move is the latest by the carrier in an effort to upgrade their fleet and provide a more consistent experience for their passengers. It represents the culmination of a multi-year effort to upgrade the interior of nearly all their mainline […]
United’s Ka-band wifi is flying, but not yet for passengers
United Airlines customers have been wondering about the state of the on-board wifi system for quite a while now. The carrier was the last major in the United States to commit to a fleet-wide connectivity plan and, even since that commitment, they’ve appeared somewhat slow on the deployment front. There are many reasons for the […]
Fly-Fi provides incredibly fast internet in the sky, most of the time
Had I not seen the speed test results myself I might not have believed them. But there we were, 36,000 feet above the North Carolina-Virginia border flying at 500 miles/hour and the numbers were clear as day: 22mbit download! Yeah, that’s damn fast. Welcome to Fly-Fi, the new in-flight internet service offered by JetBlue. This […]
The freight train which is in flight cell phone use
You cannot stop progress. Doesn’t mean you have to like it, but good luck stopping it. Remember that as we delve in to the hot topic of the day: The FCC is (finally) going to revisit the issue of in-flight cell phone use on airplanes within the United States. The FCC’s responsibility is to manage the […]
United does Investor Day and manages to not really say much
‘Tis the season for airline investor day conferences. These are events where the airlines present to representatives from investment banks and more or less beg the banks to increase their price target for the airline’s stock. They do this by bringing a bunch of the executives together and putting together a slide deck and talks […]
Missile guidance tracking systems and in-flight connectivity have more in common than you think
What do missile guidance tracking systems and in-flight connectivity have in common? It turns out quite a bit thanks to ThinKom, one of the newest names in the commercial connectivity market.
More people are using Gogo in-flight wifi and paying more for it, too
Good news from in-flight connectivity provided Gogo in their Q3 ’13 financial report which came out on Monday: more passengers are buying in-flight internet service and, on average, they’re paying more for the privilege. The company hit a trifecta on the revenue side in their North America segment, as explained in their release: The increase […]
Gate-to-gate wifi: Coming soon, but someone has to pay for it
Now that personal electronic device use is permitted gate-to-gate on the bulk of flights in the USA (and most of the rest should be on board soon) the question becomes what about gate-to-gate connectivity? When will travelers be able to use WiFi throughout their trip rather than only above 10,000 feet? Alas, the answer isn’t […]
Gogo goes global with JAL
The skies over Japan will be a bit more connected starting in 2014 thanks to a deal between Japan Airlines and in-flight internet provider Gogo. The deal calls for the entire domestic JAL fleet – 77 planes – to be fitted with Gogo’s gear, keeping them online during their flights within the country. The addition […]