In-Flight WiFi now available!

Personally, I am extremely excited about in-flight WiFi capabilites. I'm surprised it took this long to catch on! Especially for those fellow jetsetters out there, a 6 or 8+ hr flight can feel like a complete waste of time. I don't know about you, but not only would surfing the net or getting some work done keep my mind off of the stomach churning turbulence, but it would make the flight go by so much faster! Later this month Brian and I are vacationing in Hawaii (I know, I feel like we're cheating on Europe) and I'm really not looking forward to the 12 hr trip, not including a layover. Even though we will be on vacation, I can't help but think that is extremely valuable work time! We live in a world where time is money, and I'd much rather be making money than reading gossip magazines. That's what the beach is for :).

The service providing the in-flight Wifi is called Gogo. Gogo is available on select AirTran, American Airlines, Delta and Virgin America flights - with more added almost daily. Click here for participating airlines and routes. But don't just expect to walk onto the flight and automatically have access to the web. There is a list of pre-flight to-do's including setting up an account with Gogo. Click here for the pre-flight checklist

Also, one thing to be aware of, while aircrafts are becoming equipped with Gogo WiFi, they are lacking in power outlets. So even if you charge up your battery, if you’re like me, my battery only lasts an hour or so on a good day. It may be worth the investment to purchase a new or backup battery considering you aren’t guaranteed a power outlet.

Something else to keep in mind, pornography and other inappropriate sites as well as Skype and other internet phone based sites will be not be accessible in flight. Virgin says they do not endorce Skype in order to maintain a peaceful quiet cabin. You are able to instant message via Skype and of course you can Twitter Facebook and MySpace all flight long!

The downside…as in-flight WiFi becomes more and more popular, those who travel for business often and enjoy their flights as a relaxing time off, sorry! You can bet your butt your companies will be signing you up for an all inclusive Gogo pass and you’ll be expected to deliver that contract or presentation ASAP!


Gogo pricing is as follows:
$12.95 for daytime flights of over three hours
$9.95 for daytime flights of less than three hours
$5.95 on red-eye flights
$7.95 for handheld devices
$12.95 for a 24 hr pass
$49.95 for a 30-day pass

See gogoinflight.com com for details