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.
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.
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.
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
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
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.
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