Alaska Airlines adding wireless in-flight Internet

Alaska Airlines says it will become the first U.S. carrier to test a satellite-based in-flight wireless Internet service on one of its planes next year and may equip its entire fleet.

The Seattle-based airline plans to install broadband service from a company called Row 44 Inc. on a Boeing 737 jet next spring, and if it works well may add it to all of its 114 aircraft.

Row 44’s system is designed to work over water and across international borders. Alaska Airlines said that will allow it to offer the service throughout its network, which includes Alaska, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico.

Customers with Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as laptops or smart phones, will connect to the system through wireless hotspots in the aircraft cabin. A dome-shaped device mounted on top of the plane will house the antenna that receives and transmits satellite signals.

Alaska Airlines, the nation’s ninth-largest carrier, is researching various pricing options ranging from free service for some passengers to a day pass, spokeswoman Amanda Tobin Bielawski said.

In August, AMR Corp.’s American Airlines announced it would test a high-speed air-to-ground Internet service on some of its Boeing 767 jets. For that system, AirCell LLC said it would build cellular towers throughout the continental United States to transmit the broadband signals.

AirCell said American will charge a fee, and that details on pricing would not be announced until the service is ready to roll out.

About a year ago, Boeing Co. pulled the plug on its in-flight Internet service after it failed to sign on enough airlines.

The broadband service, called Connexion by Boeing, offered high-speed in-flight Internet hookups via satellite that cost $10 for the first hour, or $27 for 24 hours.

First announced in April 2000, Connexion suffered a major setback with potential U.S. airlines after the 2001 terrorist attacks triggered an industrywide downturn.

Boeing had deals with major international carriers such as Germany’s Lufthansa AG, Japan Airlines Corp., Korean Air Co., and Singapore Airlines, but large U.S. carriers were reluctant to invest in the service.