Can you really connect to Wi-Fi before takeoff and stay connected all
the way to your destination? That's what Southwest now promises. A
first-day test of how well it worked.
(Credit:
Southwest Airlines.)
When I flew to Las Vegas on Southwest Airlines on Tuesday, I had to
do the same old routine of turning off my electronic devices. But for my
return trip on Thursday, life was dramatically different. Southwest
changed to allow devices to remain on, as a new Federal Aviation
Administration rule allows. It also became the first airline to allow "gate to gate" Wi-Fi. For me, it was the perfect opportunity to put that promise to the test.
Could I really connect while I was on the ground, before leaving my departure gate and maintain my Internet connection all the way to when I landed and reached the gate of my destination, John Wayne Airport in Orange County, Calif.? For the most part, yes. There was trouble at first that cleared, and things got better and better as I went on.
A rough start
My test began when I settled into my seat at 2 p.m. PT Thursday, which was the first full day of Southwest's new policy. Unlike some other airlines with Wi-Fi, Southwest's service can send and receive Internet data even when the plane is on the ground. The only barrier, until now, has been that our devices were required to be off when the airplane doors have closed, until reaching that famous 10,000-foot level.
Logging into the service on my iPad was easy. But after getting my confirmation, the data wouldn't flow. E-mail, Twitter, browsing the Web -- nothing was working. It was the same situation with my iPhone, where I'd also signed-up for the service.
We left the gate at 2:05 p.m. and were quickly stuck on a taxiway, the pilot announcing a 10- to 15-minute backlog for takeoffs because of bad weather. But by 2:24 p.m., that disappointment was eased as the data started to flow. My first tweet finally left my iPad -- a first tweet by means of a device that only days before was required to be off -- using the airplane's own Wi-Fi, while on a taxiway.
It was historic. I should have tweeted something like "One small tweet from me; one giant leap for all of us." Instead, I just noted that it was finally working:
(Credit:
Southwest Airlines.) Could I really connect while I was on the ground, before leaving my departure gate and maintain my Internet connection all the way to when I landed and reached the gate of my destination, John Wayne Airport in Orange County, Calif.? For the most part, yes. There was trouble at first that cleared, and things got better and better as I went on.
A rough start
My test began when I settled into my seat at 2 p.m. PT Thursday, which was the first full day of Southwest's new policy. Unlike some other airlines with Wi-Fi, Southwest's service can send and receive Internet data even when the plane is on the ground. The only barrier, until now, has been that our devices were required to be off when the airplane doors have closed, until reaching that famous 10,000-foot level.
Logging into the service on my iPad was easy. But after getting my confirmation, the data wouldn't flow. E-mail, Twitter, browsing the Web -- nothing was working. It was the same situation with my iPhone, where I'd also signed-up for the service.
We left the gate at 2:05 p.m. and were quickly stuck on a taxiway, the pilot announcing a 10- to 15-minute backlog for takeoffs because of bad weather. But by 2:24 p.m., that disappointment was eased as the data started to flow. My first tweet finally left my iPad -- a first tweet by means of a device that only days before was required to be off -- using the airplane's own Wi-Fi, while on a taxiway.
It was historic. I should have tweeted something like "One small tweet from me; one giant leap for all of us." Instead, I just noted that it was finally working:
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