Taking Web surfing to new heights, passengers aboard Lufthansa jumbo jets will soon be able to flip open their laptops and browse the Internet, becoming the first air travelers to have a direct network connection from the sky.
In a boost to Boeing Co., which developed the computer system at considerable cost, Lufthansa will begin offering the high-speed Internet service in late April or early May on flights between Germany and the U.S. The carrier's plans are to install the system on each of its 80 long-haul aircraft within two years.
Among frequent fliers, emotions are mixed at the prospect.
"To me it's a wish come true. I would love to walk off an airplane and know my [e-mail] inbox is empty," said Thom Nulty, a partner with the Corporate Solutions Group, a travel management consulting firm in Monarch Beach. But Joe Brancatelli, publisher of a website for business travelers, Joe Sent Me, said some won't appreciate having their refuge invaded.
"People liked going on the road because they could control their time. The last safe place from cellphones, pagers and Blackberries was up in the air," he said. "Now your boss can say, 'So you're flying to London? Great -- get online and let's knock out a memo.' "
Lufthansa declined to provide details about the rollout, but an airline source said the Internet service would be inaugurated on the 12-hour Munich-to-Los Angeles flight.
Six other airlines are planning to offer the service this year, Boeing said, including Singapore Airlines Ltd., Scandinavian Airlines System, Japan Airlines Systems Corp. and China Airlines. (In an odd twist, the first Lufthansa flights to offer Boeing's Internet service will be on planes made by Airbus -- Boeing's longtime commercial aircraft rival.)
With FlyNet, as it's called, Lufthansa passengers with laptops will be able to send and receive e-mail, browse the Internet, download videos and access company intranets. Passengers will pay a flat fee of about $30 for unlimited access during a flight or by the minute, with the first 30 minutes costing about $10.
Although a wireless Internet connection is increasingly easy to find, in a Starbucks coffee store or an airport terminal, network access has remained mostly grounded: The airplane is one of the few places where the Internet has been kept at bay, mainly because of the high connection costs.
