Thanks to satellite links, they will also be able take calls to their mobile telephones. Access to the rest of the Web will be at a speed of 64kbps and will be charged at a rate to be set by each airline. Surfing the skies The Web service will be rolled out within 12 months on 19 European and Asian airlines including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Singapore Airlines and Malaysia Airlines.
Many airliners already carry computer servers to manage their in-flight entertainment services.
To implement the new Web service, BT has upgraded their in-flight system to use Internet Protocol throughout. This of course allows Net access, but it will also make it easier to manage and change entertainment content, a BT spokesman told BBC News Online. The Skyphone Mobile Connect service announced by BT allows passengers to program their seat-back telephone to receive any calls to their mobile phones. The service will work for the 200 million people with GSM phones, the European standard. The first airline to offer it will be Virgin Atlantic early next year.