In-flight online access just weeks away

Passengers who want to send emails and surf the internet from above the clouds will be able to from next month, when two airlines launch in-flight online access. According to a report in the Daily Telegraph, Lufthansa and Emirates flights will soon feature online access, with British Airways reportedly ready to follow suit later this year. If trials are anything to go by, the new service is likely to prove very popular. Stanley Deal, an executive of Boeing, reportedly said that when the system was trialled by British Airways and Lufthansa on transatlantic flights, it was so popular that “cabin staff had nothing to do for most of the flight”. He added: “We expect around a fifth of passengers to use the service when they have got used to the idea of logging on to the Internet in the air.” The Telegraph reports that the satellite link, which will make the online service possible, will also allow airlines to screen up to 12 television channels on flights. Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad