JetBlue announced last week that it would start offering free Wifi Internet access on selected routes as early as this week. This is welcome news to all email addicts, including me. As part of the Beta, the airline equipped one of its Airbus 320 airplanes so that passengers will be able to connect to the plane’s wireless access points just as they would on the ground.

“The New York-based airline will offer free limited service Tuesday on Flight 641 from JFK International Airport to San Francisco International. The return flight, Flight 644, leaves San Francisco at 12:25 p.m. A spokesman for JetBlue said it had not determined on which route the plane, a 150-passenger Airbus A320, will fly after Tuesday.”

The system connects to cellular towers on the ground to provide Internet access. This seems to be a far cheaper alternative compared to the now-defunct satellite-based service operated by Boeing, which was offered by a number of international carriers for a brief period last year (see also: Airtravel no longer offline sanctuary). The cellular network dependence rules out connectivity on overseas flights and I am curious to see how well the continental coverage will be.

The (initial) service is severely restricted, only permitting the use of Wifi enabled Blackberrys and a light custom version of Yahoo! email and instant messaging for laptop users. Email attachments and general web access are off limits for now, supposedly because of bandwidth constraints (remember it’s free).

I certainly prefer the quiet thumbing of in-air emails and IM’s over any involuntary participation in lengthy cell phone calls of the passenger next to me.

Technorati Tags: jetblue, in-air wifi, in-flight email

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