Another Airline Readies Surfing in Flight.
Korean Air signs with Boeing service to offer
passengers Internet access.
Passengers flying to and from South Korea should
have the opportunity to access the Internet at broadband speed
from their seats beginning some time next year, thanks to a
preliminary deal announced this week by Korean Air and Boeing's
Connexion unit.
The South Korean carrier plans to begin
installing the service in its long-haul aircraft from 2005, says
Crimson Lee, a spokesperson for Korean Air in Seoul. Plans call
for it to go into 33 of the company's Boeing 777-200 and Boeing
747-400 jets by 2008, he says. The companies are still working
out details of the roll-out schedule.
Also, Korean Air intends to expand the contract
to install the Connexion by Boeing service on a number of Airbus
A380 aircraft that are on order, Lee says. Korean Air has placed
five firm orders with manufacturer Airbus SAS and has options on
another three jets. Delivery is scheduled to begin in 2007, he
says.
The Connexion by Boeing service offers passengers
a satellite-delivered Internet connection that is expected to be
comparable to speeds offered by ADSL service. The downstream
link to the aircraft will be 20 megabits per second, and about
one-quarter to one-half will be available for passenger use. The
upstream channel off the aircraft will be 1 mbps.
The service will be sold directly by Boeing to
end users at a choice of flat-rate or metered pricing. Flat fees
are either $19.95 for flights of between three and six hours or
$29.95 for flights of six hours or more. Metered pricing is
$9.95 for 30 minutes and 20 cents per subsequent minute.
Also Online in the Air
Korean Air is the latest in a growing list of
airlines to sign up for the service.
Most recently, Japan's All Nippon Airways (ANA)
signed on for the system, and plans to install it on new
aircraft due for delivery in September. ANA's domestic
competitor, Japan Airlines System (JAL), also plans to launch
the service this year as do Lufthansa and Scandinavian Airline
Systems (SAS).
A number of other airlines have signed letters of
intent to use Connexion by Boeing including British Airways,
Singapore Airlines, and Taiwan's China Airlines.
