Will Rollout Aircell's Gogo On Six Planes
Delta Air Lines marked the initial
launch Tuesday of Gogo Inflight Internet service onboard six of the
airline's aircraft, the first in a series of more than 300 Delta
domestic mainline aircraft that will soon feature the new customer
offering.
Inflight Internet initially will be available on five MD-88
aircraft flying Delta Shuttle routes between New York's LaGuardia
Airport and Boston's Logan and Washington's Reagan airports, plus
one Boeing 757 flying throughout Delta's domestic system... with
service spreading to other Delta routes as additional aircraft are
introduced.
"In-flight Internet access is one of the most popular requests
we receive from our customers. Delta's launch of Gogo onboard these
first Delta aircraft demonstrates our continued commitment to
providing our customers with the options they want and value when
they travel with us," said Tim Mapes, Delta's senior vice president
of Marketing. "Next year when Gogo is available on our entire
domestic mainline fleet, our customers will have access to the most
extensive Wi-Fi network in the sky, making the time they spend with
us on board even more productive and entertaining."
To celebrate the launch, Delta passengers traveling on the
Gogo-equipped MD-88 Shuttle aircraft will be treated to a holiday
surprise with complimentary access to Gogo during a December 16-31,
2008 promotional period. A "Wi-Fi hot spot" decal will be
prominently displayed adjacent to the boarding door of the MD-88
aircraft so customers will know Gogo Inflight Internet service is
available on their flight.
In addition, a Delta-Gogo instructional card will be available
in each seatback, providing details on how to sign up for the
service. Gogo representatives and Delta employees will be available
at all three Delta Shuttle-served airports throughout the
promotional period to provide information and assistance to
customers traveling during this timeframe.
Delta joined with airborne communications provider Aircell to
install the company's Gogo Inflight Internet service on the
carrier's mainline domestic fleet. Gogo offers customers traveling
with Wi-Fi enabled devices, such as laptops, smartphones and
personal digital assistants (PDAs) access to the Internet,
corporate VPNs, corporate and personal e-mail accounts, as well as
SMS texting and instant messaging services for a flat fee of $9.95
on flights of three hours or less, and $12.95 on flights of more
than three hours.
The Atlanta-based airline expects 10 Gogo-equipped aircraft to
be in service by the end of this year. Throughout 2009, Delta will
continue to add Inflight Internet across its domestic fleet, first
on MD-88, MD-90, Boeing 757 and Boeing 737 aircraft, expanding to
the remaining domestic fleet of Boeing 767-300 aircraft by late
2009.
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