American Airlines – WiFi in the sky is here

It looks like American Airlines has opened up in-flight WiFi. One of our readers, Rod, sent me this email  he received from American Airlines today.

This is great news and I am sure that the other airlines will be following suit in the very near future. I want to thank Rod for passing this along. You can read the letter after the break.

Dear Rod
The next time you travel with us between New York JFK and San Francisco, Los Angeles or Miami on one of our B767-200 aircraft, you can answer your email, surf the web or shop online with Gogo^TM!
American Airlines and Aircell^®, the world's leading provider of airborne communications, have joined together to bring the first full inflight broadband service to the U.S. market. Aircell's Gogo will be available to customers as a fee-based service in all cabins. Aircell will charge $12.95 on flights more than three hours.
Gogo turns your flight into a Wi-Fi hotspot, enabling you to surf the Web, check email, Instant Message, access a corporate VPN, and more. Once the aircraft has reached 10,000 feet, you can simply turn on your Wi-Fi enabled device such as a laptop, smartphone or PDA, open your browser and be directed to the Gogo portal page where you sign up and begin surfing.
Gogo is powered by the Aircell air-to-ground (ATG) Broadband System, which runs over Aircell's exclusive nationwide network. Cell phone and Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) services are not available. Gogo provides data services, not voice services, as FCC regulations prohibit the use of cell phones in flight.
Our goal is to offer an easy-to-use, accessible inflight communication service that allows you to stay connected, informed, and entertained – making the most of your time in flight, and subsequently, your time on the ground. So the next time you travel with us, give it a try!