Passengers travelling with Delta Air Lines in the USA have four days to look out for the “WiFi hotspot” decal applied to five of its MD-88s and try the Aircell Gogo air-to-ground broadband service free of charge.
The airline introduced the service on the MD-88s and a Boeing 757 on December 15 and is offering it at no charge until the end of the month. Thereafter the standard Aircell tariff of $9.95 for flights of up to three hours and $12.95 beyond that will be applied.
Delta aims to have another four aircraft equipped by the end of the month and ultimately to introduce Gogo on its domestic fleet of MD-88s and MD-90s and Boeing 737s, 757s and 767-300s – a total of more than 330 aircraft - during the second half of next year. It also intends to equip the domestic fleet of recently acquired Northwest Airlines.
Gogo is the latest in a series of cabin enhancements that Delta has introduced in recent times. The airline offered all-digital audio/video-on-demand IFE for the first time in 2003 in the form of Panasonic’s eFX on the 48 Boeing 757s operated by Song, its former low-cost subsidiary. These aircraft, now back in the main fleet and used primarily for transcontinental services, also feature DISH Network live television delivered via eFX and an Intheairnet antenna.
The eFX/television combination has since been installed on several other Delta types, including its Boeing 737-700s and -800s and all 21 domestic 767-300s.
eFX came to Delta’s Boeing 777s last year, replacing Rockwell Collins’ TES in business class on all of the big twinjets except the new 777-200LRs, which have Panasonic’s more capacious eX2.
Delta’s domestic Boeing 767-400ERs are currently fitted with Rockwell Collins TES, to replaced with eFX throughout the cabin as the aircraft are gradually switched to international duties.
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