The Wireless Weblog

The Wall Street Journal's Scott McCartney reports today that Wi-Fi will soon be airborne. "The days when airplanes offer a hiatus from being connected to the office are numbered," he writes.

McCartney says airplane cabins will become hotspots within the next 12 months — expect announcements by the end of the summer and deployment early next year. "If broadband connections at 35,000 feet are as popular as they have been at hotels, airports, homes, schools and coffee shops, airplanes will likely be fitted with the relatively inexpensive technology rapidly," he writes.

And he says cell phones may still have a chance as well, despite recent indications to the contrary from the FCC. As airlines in Europe and the Middle East start offering cell phone service onboard later this year, McCartney says the U.S. may feel pressured to do the same. "Air travel is a copycat business," he writes. "Success in Europe could prompt action in the U.S., and bring the FCC back to possibly dropping its ban."

More here from Slashdot … and you can read the full article here.

• Virgin Atlantic: In-Flight Wi-Fi 'Commonplace' Within Five Years
• Qantas Announces In-Flight Wi-Fi on the Airbus A380
• JetBlue Airways Tests (Severely Limited) In-Flight Wi-Fi
• American Airlines and AirCell Announce Plans for In-Flight Wi-Fi
• Delta Plans In-Flight Wi-Fi on All Domestic Flights by Next Summer
• FCC to Hang Up on In-Flight Cell Phone Use
• Southwest Airlines Wants Wi-Fi
• Virgin America Promises Wi-Fi on Every Flight
• American Airlines Launches Gogo In-Flight Internet Access
• Alaska Airlines and Row 44 to Trial In-Flight Wi-Fi in 2008