捷蓝航空（JetBlue）的旅客们，对机上Wi-Fi的等待已经接近尾声：公司今天的一封内部邮件透露，该航空公司打算在2013年第一季度推出高速无线网络。Verge公司发给机组人员的一份备忘录承认，Wi-Fi是一项强大的资产，常常会影响航空旅客决定预订的机票。”客户，尤其是商务旅行的客户，在其他条件相同的情况下，会选择提供互联互通服务的航空公司，即使服务参差不齐或价格昂贵。”

捷蓝航空：现有的选择是暗淡的

然而，该公司并没有选择像捷蓝航空（Jetblue）嘲笑的Gogo这样既慢又不令人满意的现有方案，而是转向ViaSat提供Wi-Fi解决方案。我们对一月份ViaSat的Exede技术的展示印象深刻，捷蓝航空似乎相信，建立这种合作关系是推动机上网络发展的正确举措。具体来说，它声称测试在平均1分18秒的时间里加载了10个（未指明的）网页，而一个不知名的竞争对手花了8分钟完成了同样的壮举。

在一些人看来，价格比速度更重要，这是捷蓝航空没有忘记的事实。这家折扣航空公司表示，在至少30架飞机配备必要的高速Ka波段卫星之前，它将提供免费的空中连接。

前30架飞机免费

我们的消息来源声称，在这个初步试用期后，该服务将保持免费的“基本电子邮件和浏览”的目的，虽然你显然将支付如果你希望流Netflix在这些跨国航班。通过与LiveTV现有的合作关系，捷蓝航空预计将于2013年第一季度开始安装其中的第一颗卫星。据报道，该公司计划在本周举行的世界低成本航空公司大会上正式公布其计划，因此我们很快就会知道更多消息。同时，我们已经在下面附上了完整的电子邮件。

I'm writing to you from London, where I’m about to reveal some of the details of our Wi-Fi product to the World Low Cost Airlines Conference. I want to make sure you hear it first, of course, so please read on!

Currently, Wi-Fi on board is a competitive advantage. Customers, especially those traveling for business, with everything else being equal, will choose the airline that offers connectivity, even if the service is spotty or expensive.

Understanding how important inflight connectivity is to Customers forces airlines that don’t have Wi-Fi to get in the game, quickly. Airlines can choose ground-to-air services, like Gogo, or satellite-based services like Row 44 or Panasonic. Although the technology is different, the Customer experience is very similar – s l o w.

According to a recent FlightView survey, only a **all percentage of Customers are satisfied with the Wi-Fi service models currently offered in-flight and at airports.

The challenge for us was building a Wi-Fi product that broke this slow, frustrating and ultimately unsatisfactory mold. We wanted to find a way to deliver faster and less expensive service that would result in greater satisfaction. With LiveTV partnering with ViaSat, I think we found the sweet spot.

Our Wi-Fi will be lightning fast. In a series of tests, ViaSat’s staff was able to load 10 web pages through our satellite service in an average of 1 minute, 18 seconds! The second-fastest service, commonly deployed by our compe*****s, took as long as 8 minutes, 42 seconds! Customers are going to know that JetBlue’s Wi-Fi is faster – word will definitely get around.

But to make sure Customers appreciate the difference, we also decided to make the baseline connectivity free, at least until the first 30 aircraft are equipped with our service. If the speed doesn’t get them talking, the free part should!

The difference is in the technology. The Ka-band satellite we launched last October is the latest generation, with capacity equal to 100 last-generation Ku-band satellites. It’s **arter, newer, cheaper and better than anything on the market today for commercial aviation. This technology had only been available to government and private aviation, in fact. We plan to make JetBlue the very first commercial airline to offer this product on board, at altitude.

Our first foray into connectivity, with BetaBlue in 2007, was a great learning experience and I don’t regret it for one minute. It wasn’t easy for anyone to endure the questi*** and demands for good Wi-Fi from our Customers, but it was the right decision. LiveTV will begin installing ViaSat on our aircraft in the first quarter of 2013 – so stay tuned for more information as it rolls out. I know it will be worth the wait.