14 DAY TRIAL // AirCell, a provider of wireless data and voice communications for the aviation industry, announced a partnership with Virgin America to offer broadband Internet services to passengers flying throughout the U.S. Expected to be available in 2008, the service will allow Virgin America passengers to access the Internet using either their own Wi-Fi enabled mobile devices, or Virgin America's Red in-flight entertainment system placed at every seat in the aircraft. Virgin America plans to launch the service across its entire fleet of aircraft.
"AirCell's broadband service is the obvious choice to add to our guest experience," said Charles Ogilvie, Virgin America's Director of Inflight Entertainment & Partnerships. "Our goal with broadband is simple: let guests decide how and when they want to communicate and interact by providing relevant options. In AirCell we have a partner who knows and understands innovation."
As part of the agreement, AirCell and Virgin America will integrate AirCell's broadband service into Virgin America's in-flight entertainment system, Red. Besides having access to the entertainment features that are currently offered by Red, customers will also be able to check and send email through Red's TALK chat system using popular instant messaging services such as MSN, Google Talk, Yahoo!, Skype and AIM.
"The Virgin way of doing things is world renowned for good reason," said Jack Blumenstein, CEO of AirCell. "Virgin brings radical, positive change to every industry in which it operates. The AirCell relationship is no different and we are proud to partner with Virgin America in one of the most significant transformative experiences in the airline industry."
The broadband Internet service is made possible by AirCell's air-to-ground cellular network, which transmits and receives data between the ground and the aircraft at high speeds. Upon launch, passengers traveling with Virgin America will have access to high-speed Internet across the U.S. territory, extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific and the Canadian to the Mexican borders.