Delta Air Lines is taking Internet access to the skies this week with the launch of Gogo Inflight Internet service on board six of its planes. Delta is introducing the service with a free trial that lets consumers experience the technology.
Monday’s announcement highlights the first of more than 300 Delta domestic planes that will soon feature in-flight Internet, according to the company.
East Coast travelers will be among the first to experience Delta’s newest amenity. The in-flight Internet services are debuting on five MD-88 aircraft flying Delta shuttle routes between New York’s LaGuardia Airport and Boston’s Logan and Washington’s Reagan airports, plus one Boeing 757 flying throughout Delta’s domestic system. The service will spread to other Delta routes as additional aircraft are introduced.
Flying Surfers
Tim Mapes, Delta’s senior vice president of marketing, said in-flight Internet access is one of the most popular requests the company receives from its customers.
“Next year when Gogo is available on our entire domestic mainline fleet, our customers will have access to the most extensive Wi-Fi network in the sky, making the time they spend with us on board even more productive and entertaining,” Mapes said.
The cost may be attractive to Internet-addicted road warriors. Gogo offers customers traveling with Wi-Fi-enabled devices, including laptops, smartphones and personal digital assistants access to the Internet, corporate VPNs, corporate and personal e-mail accounts, and SMS texting and instant-messaging services for a flat fee of $9.95 on flights of three hours or less, and $12.95 on flights of more than three hours.
“Unlike phones on planes — the air phones that no one really used because of the
high cost — it seems the prices for these Wi-Fi in-flight services are much more reasonable, particularly on cross-country flights,” said Michael Gartenberg, vice president of mobile strategy for Jupitermedia.
Some travelers will get an opportunity…