Why Fly with WiFi?
Whenever Boeing hiccups, the Seattle press rushes to its side with thermometers. You’ll never read the words “Chicago-based Boeing” in a Seattle daily. Thus, over the weekend, the Seattle Times ran an article about Boeing’s Connexion venture, which has developed a network and technology to allow airline passengers with wireless devices to plug into high-speed internet while flying. At first blush, this seems like a great idea - to be able to hook into your corporate VPN, send or receive time-sensitive documents via email or even do blog updates.
However, there are several reasons why this looks like a non-starter:
- The Pricing - it’s gonna cost you 14.95 to log on for a short (less than 3 hours) flight, 19.95 for a 3 - 6 hour flight, and 29.95 for flights over 6 hours. While I’m sure large corporations will drive better deals and award the privilege to valued road warriors, that’s a pretty hefty price tag for those of us who are small-business or leisure users.
- Cost to the Airlines to install - $500,000 to $700,000 per airplane. Suppose Boeing kicks back $5 per user login, it will take about 150,000 hits to break even. With airlines hitting up FAs and pilots for wage concessions and fighting every proposed safety retrofit, I really don’t see this happening to any aircraft except perhaps new purchases of Boeing planes, where they can throw it in to beat out Airbus.
- Ergonomics of use - I find coach seats to be so cramped that it’s often physically impossible to open a laptop and type. Most of the time, if I don’t get upgraded and have to ride in coach, I leave the laptop under the seat and just catch up on my reading. That leaves first class passengers to make up the bulk of the 150,000 hits, and they’re too busy loading up on the free drinks.
Beyond these impediments, the fragmentation of WiFi-for-pay pretty much discourages me from using WiFi unless I can get it free at a friendly cafe. Here would be a typical trip for me if Connexion was available and I wanted wire to wire (no, that ain’t right - wireless to wireless) internet access:
- Check in 2 hours early at SeaTac, scurry to the Worldclub on the South concourse. Open my laptop and - oooh! - a Boingo wireless signal is available. I click in and get to surf for an hour+ for $7.95
- Board Minneapolis-bound flight, which is scheduled for a few ticks more than 3 hours. Wait for takeoff, turnout, throttle-back over Republican neighborhoods on the east side that have bullied the FAA into noise reduction, power back up once we’re over Democratic precincts and, finally, the “electronic devices” announcement. Light up laptop, access Connexion for $19.95. We’re traveling with a jet stream on our tail, and actual flying time might actually be less than 3 hours, but you can bet Boeing will charge for the scheduled flying time. Surf for 2+ hours (skipping the in-flight meal). Shut down laptop on approach to MSP.
- Deplane at MSP, scurry to my Worldclub and open my laptop. Ah! A wireless signal is available that would have already been paid for if it were also a Boingo signal, but No-o-o-o. MSP has switched its service from Boingo to another service. Desperate, I punch in for another $7.95 and surf until I have to run to my gate for my next flight.
- Board Milwaukee-bound flight, scheduled for a little over an hour. Power up, take off, cruising altitude, log on to Connexion (fat chance, though, of Northwest fitting out those old DC-9s with anything, even replacement light bulbs) for $14.95 and surf for 40 minutes before our planned descent into Beersheba.
- Check into my hotel and - yippee! - WiFi is free at the Baymont and Holiday Inn Express, for now. The Hilton charges 9.95 per night, the same as a pay-per-view porn flick. My wrists are screaming in pain from typing if I had to ride coach, so I pass on both and soak my hands in an ice bucket.
Total cost for about 4 hours’ surfing: $50.80. I dearly love reading y’all’s stuff, but at that price I’ll wait and read you on my client’s time the next day. If I could pay a reasonable price for universal access, I might be persuaded. Oddly, I’ve gotten free wireless access in airports at Great Falls, MT and Idaho Falls, ID. The savvy traveler might, in view of that, contrive to fly only with connections in cities with prominent waterfalls.
