American Airlines planes will get ViaSat’s powerful WiFi
American Airlines is equipping a fleet of Boeing 737 MAX planes with in-flight WiFi other than Gogo’s. It has inked a deal with California-based company ViaSat, which also provides internet connection to some of Virgin America’s newest A320 planes. ViaSat promises an “at home” experience by providing you with a (12 Mbps) connection strong enough to stream movies and music. It uses a high-capacity satellite system, and it’s launching another satellite in 2019 to make its connection even faster. You can’t confirm that speed on an AA plane just yet, though: the 100 737 MAX planes the carrier ordered won’t be delivered until September 2017.
According to Chicago Tribune, Gogo’s shares dropped after the partnership was announced. However, despite AA’s and Gogo’s tumultuous relationship, they’re not completely breaking up just yet. American Airlines petitioned a district court in February to allow it to ditch Gogo and switch to ViaSat. It ended up withdrawing its request, though, and agreed to equip 134 Airbus planes with Gogo’s newer 2Ku WiFi service.
(24)
