Virgin first installed WiFi on all planes.

The Americans do not see this, but at a height of 10 km above their heads now there is a real technological war.

There was a race between the airlines, who would be the first to establish a WiFi connection on their continental flights so that the Network would be available throughout the flight. When they do this, we can finally monitor the webcams from each aircraft in real time, as well as watch the catastrophes live via the Internet.

The first to install WiFi absolutely on all its aircraft yesterday announced the company Virgin America . Today, Virgin will hold a ceremonial launch of the service - for this, the famous Opra Winfrey will be put on the plane, and she will broadcast live via Skype. In fact, the use of VoIP on board is prohibited, but for Oprah they made an exception to the rule.
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Unfortunately, the Internet is only available on continental flights across the United States, because the AirCell Gogo system works through land towers.

By mid-summer, AirTran will also provide WiFi on all of its airplanes (136 Boeing). In a hurry, Delta Air Lines establishes hot spots in the salons of the airline (300 aircraft), they must finish by the end of the summer. Interestingly, all airlines, without exception, install Aircell Gogo. Installation of the system on the same plane costs about $ 100 thousand.

All this haste looks pretty amazing, because most airplanes are poorly adapted for normal work with a laptop. First of all, there is no additional outlet at every seat in the cabin. Secondly, the laptop simply has nowhere to put, so that it is convenient to type text - if you put on your knees, you have to curl up in a strange pose. However, WiFi on board is almost the only hope for airlines to increase passenger traffic.

The AirCell Gogo service at Virgin America will cost $ 7.95 for a pocket-sized device, $ 9.95 for flights shorter than three hours and $ 12.95 for longer flights. Most likely, on other airlines, the tariff scale will be approximately (or exactly) the same.

via NY Times