American Airlines has begun testing a new system which will allow inflight WiFi users to wirelessly stream movies, TV shows and other video programming from a central unit on the aircraft to their laptops and mobile devices.
Early morning departure out of JFK. (Photo by Mario Craig)
The new product, developed by Aircell, has been installed on two of American’s 767-200 aircraft used for transcontinental service. Trials allowing customers to try it out will begin in the summer, with an in-service date pegged to early fall, pending FAA certifications.
“We know our customers want to be connected on the ground and in the sky, so we are working hard to stay on the leading edge of connectivity through technology enhancements like this,” said Rob Friedman, American’s Vice President of Marketing.
American says it will not set a price for the new service until gauging customer interest. Aircell’s GoGo provides American’s current WiFi product, which ranges in price from $4.95 to $12.95 per flight, depending on scheduled flight length. All American 767-200s and some MD-80s and 737s are equipped with GoGo WiFi, and American says it plans to expand the service all MD-80s, 737s and 757s by summer 2012.
