In-flight wifi is set to boom, according to In-Stat ©Dmitriy Shironosov

Wi-Fi access on airplanes is skyrocketing in the United States; it started being available only 18 months ago with only a few dozens aircrafts equipped and it is going towards 2000 planes by the end of 2010, according to a report by In-Stat.
By 2012, In-Stat predicts that 76 million connections will be made in the sky, and that customers will spend some $95 million (€75.7 million) on in-flight Wi-Fi this year.
Currently, fees in the United States range from $5 for 90 minutes connectivity to bundled packages of $35 per month for unlimited use. But connect fees are projected to decline 24% from 2010 to 2014.
Whilst Virgin America became the first US carrier to fully equip its fleet with Wi-Fi in 2009, international carriers Emirates, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Oman Air are all still working on rolling out connectivity to their aircraft.
The Hong Kong-based international airlines Cathay Pacific and Dragonair will soon offer wireless internet connections to passengers on their flights, it is expected that all 158 aircraft in the combined Cathay-Dragonair fleet will have the services available within two years. The service - Panasonic Avionics' eXConnect system - would also allow passengers to use mobile phones, smart phones and BlackBerrys to make calls, send text messages, it uses a series of satellites which are able to maintain signals even when aircraft are flying over oceans.

Published 09.07.2010