Air Canada and Gogo are planning to roll out Wi-Fi on Air Canada’s entire North American fleet in May.
The agreement also provides for future type-testing of Gogo satellite solutions for Wi-Fi on international flights. The international trials will take place in 2015.
“Air Canada continually seeks to enhance the travel experience and that is why we are pleased to be the first airline in Canada to offer in-flight Wi-Fi connectivity to customers flying over continental North America. In today’s connected world, our customers want to access email, mobile device applications and the internet wherever they are, both to increase their work productivity and expand their leisure options.,” said Benjamin Smith, Air Canada’s Executive Vice-President and Chief Commercial Officer.
Air Canada presently has two Wi-Fi-equipped Airbus 319 aircraft that are now operating in Canada and the U.S. and, subject to a final agreement with Gogo, the carrier plans to begin outfitting its remaining Airbus A319, A320 and A321 narrow-body and Embraer 190 fleet types, as well as its Air Canada Express CRJ-705 and Embraer 175 aircraft, with Gogo’s Air-To-Ground (ATG) and next generation ATG-4 technologies.
The installations are to begin in May 2014, with the goal of equipping 29 aircraft in 2014 and a targeted completion date of December 2015 for the designated 130 narrow-body aircraft. The 2Ku and Global Xpress satellite trials are expected to take place on select international aircraft in 2015.
