American Airlines completed the first aircraft installation of the Aircell Internet broadband connectivity solution at its Kansas City maintenance base. American, which will be the first U.S. airline to offer customers Aircell’s Internet broadband solution, plans to install and test the technology in 2008 on all 15 of its Boeing 767-200 aircraft that primarily fly transcontinental routes.
Aircell’s air-to-ground broadband system will provide an Internet connection, VPN access, and e-mail capabilities. VoIP services will not be available.
Aircell’s air-to-ground system uses three lightweight antennae installed on the outside of the aircraft. One antenna, the PCS/GPS antenna, is mounted on the top of the aircraft, and the other two antennae are mounted to the bottom of the aircraft. Customers access the broadband signal using their own Wi-Fi enabled devices, which communicate directly with wireless access points that are distributed evenly throughout the aircraft cabin ceiling. The signal will be transmitted through the 3mhz signal from air to ground using 92 cellular towers throughout the continental United States.http://www.aircell.com/http://www.aa.com
