IM + Friendly Skies = ?
So in partnership a partnership with Yahoo and RIM, Jet Blue plans to offer wireless access on their flights. So will this increase productivity and help others pass the time on a coast to coast flight or be a bigger annoyance? I cannot imagine sitting next to someone who is yapping on their Skype the whole trip. And many people that don’t normally bring a laptop aboard now would probably do so now that internet is available. Get ready for your aisle-mate surfing more YouTube and MySpace. There are no cubicle walls to shield you from someone else’s glaring laptop screen for hours on end. For me a flight is my rare chance to catch up on some reading or doing a crossword. Heck, maybe even carry on a conversation. I get enough daily internet intake to tide me over for an 3 hour internetless flight.
With that said we all know it that in-flight internet will be a reality soon. Regardless, I think internet in the Friendly Skies should be limited to business class. It would give fliers a choice as to their need for in-flight internet or not. If you allow it in coach then you can add bad digital manners to the already long list of potential nightmare flying personalities.
Just don’t forget to bring a great book for those multi-hour tarmac delays!
Tags: airline internet, Jet blue, manners