If you needed one more reason to make the switch to carrying an Internet enabled device this might be the reason to push you over the edge. American Airlines is testing a paperless system for mobile boarding passes. Passengers will be able to get boarding passes electronically on their Internet enabled mobile phones or PDAs via e-mail. The barcode can be scanned at TSA security checkpoints and American Airlines gates. The mobile boarding passes will initially be available for passengers on U.S. domestic flights from Chicago’s O’Hare International, Los Angeles International and John Wayne Orange County airports. If the trials are successful the mobile boarding passes may be extended to other U.S. airports.
Tag Archive for 'American'
Engadget reports that American Airlines will be testing the Gogo in-flight WiFi service on unspecified round-trip flight from New York’s JFK and Los Angeles’ LAX beginning on June 25. The service will be free for passengers during the testing, but will eventually run users $12.95 for flights greater than three hours and $9.95 for trips under that threshold.
A USA Today article speaks to a move by US airlines to give economy passengers greater control and selection of movies, audio, and games.
Airlines worldwide spent $1.4 billion on in-flight entertainment hardware last year, research firm IMDC says. It’s projected to increase to more than $2 billion by 2012. The result: monitors in individual seatbacks, digital transmission for clearer picture, on-demand delivery that lets passengers pause and rewind, hundreds of movie and song titles, games beyond Hangman and Sudoku, seat-to-seat texting and even e-mail.
Most travelers and analysts agree that foreign airlines have been more aggressive about adopting the latest and fanciest features.
via USA Today
Gogo is the internet, on a plane. Gogo (powered by Aircell) enables email access, web browsing, and VPN access at mobile broadband speeds, using a devices built-in Wi-Fi capability. Gogo is launching in 2008 on select flights on American Airlines and Virgin America. The Gogo site includes a map of premium routes that will be offering the Gogo in-flight service. Pricing is not mentioned. You can also sign-up to a mailing list to be kept advised as Gogo adds routes and airlines.
The big question is how much are you willing to pay to be connected while in-flight?
According to Henry Harteveldt, an industry analyst at Forrester Research who recently issued a report on the subject, the answer is that we’re about to see a sea change that will likely bring Internet on board most major U.S. carriers.
That’s the good news.
The bad news is that it’s not going to happen overnight. “It will probably be two years or so before we see the vast majority of aircraft in the U.S. with this,” Harteveldt said. “But I do expect it will be on just about every airline.”
via CNET.com
Both JetBlue and American Airlines are making plans to roll out onboard Internet access to passengers while in flight. Even though the plans are somewhat different in scope—JetBlue is only offering e-mail and IM connectivity, while American has plans for full ‘Net access—and will only initially be available on certain flights, both represent a significant step towards full online connectivity at 35,000 feet.
via 
For its system, American Airlines is relying on the expertise of AirCell, which is promising to get things up and running on at least some flights sometime next year. Initially, the in-flight WiFi will only be offered on American Airlines’ fleet of Boeing 767-200 aircraft, which primarily fly transcontinental routes. From the looks of it, however, the service won’t be a freebie, with American Airlines saying it’ll announce the cost of the service at the time it’s rolled out.
via Engadget
