Air France and KLM are testing their in-flight Wi-Fi, according to USA Today. While it has become commonplace on flights within the U.S. and Canada, on board Wi-Fi is less common on overseas flights.
The tests are beginning on two Boeing 777-300ER jets that will be flying between Europe and North America. The first test for Air France will be on May 29 on New York-bound flight from Paris. KLM will try it out on a flight from Amsterdam to Panama City, Panama.
The service will allow passengers to send text messages and e-mails as well as surf the Internet during their flight. It's "specially designed in-flight website" gives customers access to "a broad range of free...services including live television news and sports channels and relevant airline and destination information," the company said in a press release.
The Wi-Fi will cost about $14 per hour of about $26 for the entire flight. Fees will be the same in all classes of service. Mobile phone usage for texts and data will be billed to phone users according to their individual roaming agreements with their mobile phone carriers. Access to the in-flight website will be free of charge. Service will become available once the planes reach an elevation of 20,000 feet.
"By jointly launching inflight Wi-Fi and data transmission, Air France and KLM are continuing to innovate," Alexandre de Juniac, the CEO of Air France, said in a press release. "This in-flight connectivity test phase on long-haul flights perfectly integrates our ongoing strategy to offer our customers even more new products and services."
Air France-KLM has not specified how long the testing phase would last, but the company is committed to the new service.
"Connectivity is a significant investment in a brand new area where technology is still under development," Peter Hartman, the CEO of KLM, said. "Being permanently connected is part of our customers' daily lives.
"We are aiming to define the best possible product and system to fit their needs and wishes," Hartman added. "We're confident that, in the future, all our passengers will be able to remain connected when traveling to and from our hubs at Paris Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol."
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
