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There's More In-Flight Wi-Fi Than Ever
By Justin Bachman January 26, 2015
Photographer: Jason Dewey/Getty Images

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2015-01-26/there-s-more-in-flight-wi-fi-than-ever?campaign_id=yhoo

So much for napping on the flight—you’ve got obligations to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and probably your job.

The proliferation of in-flight Internet access made 2014 “a banner year” for connectivity as U.S. airlines raced to equip their fleets with Wi-Fi and in-seat power plugs, according to a “state of in-flight Wi-Fi” report released Monday by Routehappy, a firm that tracks in-flight amenities.

All the most-traveled domestic routes, defined as those with at least 20 daily flights in each direction, such as San Francisco-New York City, now have Wi-Fi on all flights, according to the report. That’s the result of an aggressive effort over the past 18 months by such carriers as Delta, United, and JetBlue to install new equipment on planes and to upgrade speeds.

Gogo, the largest U.S. provider of in-flight Internet, said today that it has a backlog of more than 1,000 aircraft awaiting installations and that about half of those would be completed in 2015. That would mark a record for the company, which expects to launch a faster, satellite-based service in the second half of the year. “We are excited about where we are going in terms of bringing new aircraft online and adding significantly more capacity to the network,” Gogo Chief Executive Michael Small said in a news release.

Currently, Alaska Airlines, Virgin America, and United have the most planes equipped with both Wi-Fi and electrical outlets, while Delta Air Lines offers the most flights with Internet access, according to Routehappy’s research. Southwest’s larger Boeing 737 models also have Wi-Fi access.

Wi-Fi access is increasing on both short regional flights and long international routes. Last month, for example, American, the world’s largest airline, said it would install Wi-Fi from Gogo on nearly 250 regional jets by 2016. Delta already has Wi-Fi in first and economy classes on its regional jets; United says its regional jet fleet will have Gogo’s faster ATG-4 network installed by late summer. United's entire fleet will be Wi-Fi equipped by late July, save for the newest 787 Dreamliner. Delta says its entire international fleet will have Wi-Fi by the end of this year.

This explosive growth of Wi-Fi can be credited to the rapid saturation of smartphones and tablets—nearly everyone now travels with one. “People are so connected in their digital lifestyles these days that the thought of being on an aircraft disconnected for six hours is just not something they want,” says Jason Rabinowitz, data research manager at Routehappy, which rates airline itineraries based on their amenities, aircraft type, and connection times.

Still, sluggish speeds remain a hassle for travelers surfing and working at cruise altitude, as only 1 percent of current Wi-Fi access is the fastest type, Routehappy said. “The quality does vary pretty wildly these days,” says Rabinowitz. There’s also the issue of hefty prices for much of what’s available, including the infamous $1,200 Wi-Fi bill a Canadian executive racked up in November flying from London to Singapore.

The fastest Wi-Fi experience is found on JetBlue Airways and United. They have been early adopters of ViaSat’s Exede satellite-based system, which offers speeds similar to those found at home and work. United also has that system on some of its 757s and 737s. Israel’s El Al is also planning to have some flights using ViaSat’s system late this year or early in 2016.

Internationally, nine carriers have Wi-Fi access on at least one-fifth of their flights, with Icelandair and Norwegian Air Shuttle having Internet on more than 80 percent of their flights, the report said. (Norwegian doesn’t offer Wi-Fi on its long-haul routes.)

Over time, as airlines begin competing even more with their Wi-Fi capabilities, it’s likely that speeds will rise and prices will drop. Says Rabinowitz: “Just look at where we were with cellular connections five years ago.”



Bachman is an associate editor for Businessweek.com.