Delta plans free wifi to save company money and rival JetBlue

A shot of the Delta in-flight entertainment system.Mike Blake/Reuters

• Delta Air Lines CEO said it plans on offering free Wi-Fi on all of its flights, but a timetable for this decisions has not been released, according to multiple reports.
• “We’re going to make it free,” said Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian at the Skift Global Forum in New York City on September 28, as reported by Skift.com. “I don’t know of anywhere else besides in an airplane that you can’t get free Wi-Fi.”
• Wi-Fi technology, which stands for Wireless Fidelity, is available at most schools and in the workplace free of charge, but the technology is usually cost-prohibitive on airplanes.
• JetBlue Airways is currently the only U.S. carrier that offers free Wi-Fi for its passengers.

Delta Air Lines announced it plans on offering free Wi-Fi on all of its flights, but a timetable for this decision has not been released, according to multiple reports.

At the Skift Global Forum in New York City on Friday, September 28, Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian told an audience he plans to offer free Wi-Fi on his planes. 

“We’re going to make it free,” said Bastian, as reported by Skift.com. “I don’t know of anywhere else besides in an airplane that you can’t get free Wi-Fi.”

While Wi-Fi technology is available at most schools and in the workplace free of charge, the technology is usually cost-prohibitive on airplanes. The Desert News reports internet providers like GoGo charge for installation and operating costs, forcing airlines to transfer those costs to customers. 

According to USA Today, Delta charges $16 a day for Wi-Fi on North American flights and $28 a day for international trips. 

Skift.com reported that during the Global Forum, Bastian did not give any indication of a timeline as to when Delta will implement free WiFi into its airplanes, but said that wireless in-flight entertainment (IFE) will lead to savings. 

“A wireless IFE is great because it means we don’t have to wire the planes anymore,” Bastian said, according to Skift.com, estimating that wireless IFE will cut down the cost of implementation “by two-thirds.”

JetBlue Airways is currently the only U.S. carrier that offers free Wi-Fi for its passengers. Its free Wi-Fi has been available on its A320 fleet since 2016 and its system does not need planes to reach cruising altitude before making connectivity available, as JetBlue passengers are connected to their WiFi from the moment they step on the plane until the end of the flight.