Delta Airlines To Begin Offering Wi-Fi Aboard International Flights

Customers flying on international flights aboard Delta aircraft can soon take advantage of onboard Wi-Fi thanks to Gogo-powered Inflight Internet Service.

The company announced on Friday that it will be adding 150 Wi-Fi flights aboard its Airbus 330 flights and its fleet of Boeing 777, 767, 757 and 747s.

Gogo has quickly become the industry leader in air-to-ground connections, functioning on more than 800 planes of which 550 operate domestically in the United States. The GoGo internet service currently services more than 400,000 customers per day via Delta flights.

Instead of relying on base-station connections GoGo will implement Ku-band satellite signals from several communications providers.

Delta plans to install Wi-Fi equipment on nearly 1000 flights by 2015.

While in-flight WiFi is still in its infancy a new proposed in-flight wireless network from Qualcomm is promising speeds up to 300Gbps. The Next-Gen AG system relies on 150 towers located throughout the United States and is used by various airlines and the Gogo wireless network.

Delta currently serves more than 160 million customers annually which means the company’s new service, especially aboard its larger international aircraft could attract millions of new users.

There is one problem with the new international system, according to the Chicago Tribune:

“The satellite systems are three to four times more expensive than air-to-ground systems to install, and the process also takes longer. In addition, the satellite equipment is heavier and therefore requires more fuel burn.”

WiFi aboard flights has become a popular option as we become a constantly connected society and rely heavily on Facebook, Twitter, email and other forms of electronic communication.