American Airlines To Test Inflight Internet

American Airlines is hoping to become the first domestic carrier of inflight internet. American plans on working with AirCell, an Illinois based company that has been designing a system to provide onboard Wi-Fi from an antenna to the ground.

The service will probably not be free, and is expected to cost slightly more than comparable existing Wi-Fi HotSpots. It is also expected to run at DSL speeds and will be tested on American’s Boeing 767-200 planes.

However, if you are not willing to pony up for Wi-Fi, the service will still be quite useful, as American plans on offering free Wi-Fi for sponsored travel websites related to hotels, rental cars, restaurants, etc. American has not announced a date for the launch but hopes to do so soon.