Fly the Connected Skies?

Many people can’t imagine being offline for any amount of time. They have their phones at the dinner table and on vibrate at the movies. How can they fly from one part of the world to another or even take a short flight from city to city? As little as two years ago, they had to get on a plane and suffer disconnection for the duration of the flight. Now over 60 airlines offer in-flight Wi-Fi. It is so common that people expect Airline Wi-Fi.

“When customers get on a flight that doesn’t have Wi-Fi, they get angry” – Jason Rabinowitz, Routehappy’s data research manager.

Fortune quoted the results of a study by Routehappy: Passengers have a chance of Wi-Fi on about 36% of available seat miles worldwide and a 78% on a US airline.

The price and quality of in-flight Wi-Fi varies from airline to airline.

Jet Blue offers Fly-fi, free internet access on most of their flights and describes it as “a robust online experience much like you would expect at home or work.”
Some of Virgin America planes connect through ViaSat which claims to provide internet speeds that are typically 8 to 10 times faster than any other in-flight technology. ViaSat costs between $4.99 – $17.99 depending on the flight. On flights where ViaSat isn’t available, internet access is provided by Gogo.
American Airlines uses Tmobile to connect international flyers and some on domestic flights. The cost is 2 hours for $12, 4 hours for $17, or the length of the flight for $19. Other connected flights connect through Gogo.
Delta also connects with Gogo and offers 24 hour, weekly and monthly passes.

Gogo is the biggest in-flight internet provider. It offers packages from $7.00 for a one hour pass to $59.99 for a monthlong multi-airline pass. The problem with Gogo is the connectivity speed. It’s infrastructure hasn’t been updated since 2008 and now it is overwhelmed. And not only with paid users, both Trip Hacker and SCS Security give instructions for free Gogo Wi-Fi. Gogo plans upgrades that will take effect in 2018.

You can fly the connected skies, you just may not be well connected. Check with your airline before you book your flight to see if Wi-Fi is available, the price, and who provides the connection. You might prefer a nap instead of a frustratingly poor connection.