October, 2004 | |
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Wi-Fi in the sky
New York (Reuters) -- Business travelers will be able to surf the Web securely on long-distance flights
by combining services from Boeing Co. and iPass Inc., the companies plan to announce on Monday.
Redwood Shores, California-based iPass, which makes software that connects travelers to their offices
from remote locations, said corporate customers will be able to connect to the Web on planes within six
months using wireless links from Boeing. The companies are betting that business travelers, who already
connect their laptop computers wirelessly in hotels, cafes, and airports around the world, want to stay
connected on the plane. The market for airborne Internet has been slow to develop. Northern Sky
Research predicts that it could grow to between $200 million to $300 million by 2008 from roughly
$5 million to $10 million this year. So far Boeing only provides Internet links on a few long-haul routes for
German carrier Lufthansa but it said seven airlines have plans to outfit their planes. The aerospace
company recently signed up Germany's Siemens AG as its first large corporate client. Boeing sets up
so-called wireless hotspots in the sky by using satellites to deliver the Internet to planes and extending
these links to passenger's laptops via Wi-Fi, or short-range wireless links which work on most laptops.
Customers of iPass will not need to sign up for a separate service to use the Boeing links. iPass hasn't
finalized how much it plans to charge for the on-board service.
Asiana Airlines Selects Connexion by Boeing for In-Flight Connectivity
SEOUL, South Korea, Asiana Airlines, one of the newest members of the Star Alliance, has selected
Connexion by Boeing -- a business unit of The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA - News) -- as its provider
of high-speed Internet-based communications onboard its long-haul fleet. The letter of intent agreement
calls for the first installation of the Connexion by Boeing (SM) mobile connectivity service to commence in
production on Asiana's 777-200ER airplane targeted for delivery in July 2005, with service starting shortly
after that. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Airbus looking at ways to allow use of mobile phones on aircraft
FRANKFURT, Germany (AFP) -- European aircraft maker Airbus said Thursday it is collaborating with the
German aerospace center DLR, to try and come up with a system which would allow passengers
to use their mobile phones in-flight without interfering with the plane's navigation systems. Airbus and
DLR were "working very intensively" to try and develop such a system, spokesman David Voskuhl said.
But he refused to confirm or deny a report in the Thursday edition of the Financial Times Deutschland
which said the first tests would be carried out on Sept 3. "That depends on the weather and a number of
other factors," he said. By coming up with such a system, Airbus is trying to out-do arch-rival Boeing
which has come up with a system allowing high-speed Internet access on board its aircraft, enabling passengers
to consult their e-mail and surf the Web in-flight.
Onboard wardrobe malfunction?
If you think that your fellow passengers are exercising questionable judgement in picking out their onboard
wardrobe, you're not alone. "Today, travelers step off the beach barely clothed, or out of the gym still
sweating, and onto their planes," writes Keith L. Alexander, Business Class travel columnist for The Washington
Post. "Ungroomed, unshowered passengers shamble aboard oblivious to any concern that they will be packed onto
a crowded flight with scores of other people in close quarters for hours." To make
his point, Alexander cites an incident last month in which American Airlines ejected a passenger and his
girlfriend from one flight for wearing an "indecent" t-shirt. American has rules that say it may "refuse to
transport you" if you "have an offensive odor not caused by a disability or illness" or "are clothed in a manner
that would cause discomfort or offense to other passengers." Mirroring the feedback received by
Today in the Sky, many of Alexander's readers cheered American's decision to eject the passengers with the
"indecent" t-shirt.
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