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American Airlines announced today that it will begin to offer ad-supported, high-speed inflight Wi-Fi for AAdvantage® members as well as ways to redeem miles for Wi-Fi on other flights. This is good news and a step towards catching up with what Delta currently offers, but not quite there yet.
American Airlines has some of the most expensive Wi-Fi of any US carriers. United is a consistent $8 for MileagePlus members on domestic flights. American can run between $7 and $29 depending on the flight. Now, all aircraft equipped with Viasat (on American’s narrowbody fleet) will offer complimentary (ad supported) Wi-Fi as well as the option to redeem miles. The only catch is that the “free” Wi-Fi is limited to 20 minutes.
Gary from View from the Wing points out that American currently has three Wi-Fi providers across its aircraft. These include:
- Viasat: Boeing 737, Airbus A321, and some Airbus A319
- Intelsat: This is found on regional aircraft and American plans to upgrade this on 500 planes starting this summer. Some Airbus A319 (from US Airways) and Airbus A320 also have Intelsat.
- Panasonic: Boeing 787and Boeing 777
American is the first airline to offer content streaming on 100% of its mainline fleet. Customers can stream from their favorite platforms and continue to access over 1,500 pieces of free content on its inflight entertainment system. The airline rotates nearly 200 TV shows and movies monthly.
Anthony’s Take: This will likely be confusing to customers at first, but it’s progress and making American more competitive with Delta and United. The complimentary Wi-Fi is very limited, but at least miles can be redeemed for in-flight surfing. Baby steps here.
(Image Credits: American Airlines.)
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1 comment
Yeah but service will still be questionable and food meh and the seats… oh my… and don’t even get me started on crap APP so a LONG way to go to be anything like Delta.