Internet on airplanes? Finally, the push has come!

06th June 2010
Internet on airplanes? Finally, the push has come!
I spy WiFi in the Sky!

After a few fitful initiatives, leading commercial  airlines – mostly American – have started offering Internet services across their fleet. The trend can be expected in coming weeks, to spread to more global carriers including the one’s that touch India.
IndiaTechOnline gives its readers a heads-up on what to expect – and what could be some of the challenges ( see the Business Traveler story)   -- with this selection of links to recent postings on the Web. Remember, as you  soon  check your mail in seat 34 B, that  you got the first whiff of what’s in store for Indian   corporate flyers   right here! For a few days our Video slot  on this page, features the BNet feature on WiFi and other new services in the air.
 
The In-Flight Internet Boom Is Here — Only 10 Years Off Schedule
“We get two reactions. ‘Wow, there’s Internet,’ and ‘Of course, why wouldn’t there be?’”
by Kevin Gray / BNet
Go ahead and grumble that the legroom would squeeze Toulouse-Lautrec, and the security lines move slower than a Mumbai traffic jam.  Now, frequent flyer, you finally have something to be grateful for: the emergence of Wi-Fi in the sky.
Airlines Offer More Wi-Fi / Wall St Journal June 3 2010
As Americans grow accustomed to being connected all the time, more broadband providers are filling in one of the few remaining dead zones airplanes.One issue is causing some airlines to hesitate before installing wireless Internet access on all of their aircraft—it remains unclear how many passengers are willing to pay for wireless access in flight.
 
 
Airlines That Know How & Why To Wi-Fi
by Ron Callari
On May 25, Alaska Airlines is the latest US airline to launch a Wi-Fi service on six of its airplanes flying on the mainland through the end of July. And the service is free until August 1, when the airline will be charging a minimum of $4.95 per fflight -still considerably below what some of the other airlines are offering.
 
7 airlines offering inflight WiFi
 
Survey: Most Cos. Reject Inflight Wi-Fi Reimbursement 
June 7 2010