In-Flight Email Now Available

Fasten your seatbelts. Passengers aboard JetBlue can now expect to get in-flight email service. Starting next week, JetBlue will be the first US airline to provide in-flight internet access. It will begin offering free email access on one of its airplanes - the BetaBlue, which is equipped with wireless Internet antennae in the ceiling and a computer server that relays signals to mobile telephone towers on the ground. Passengers will be able to connect to Yahoo Mail and instant messaging services via wireless internet connections on laptops or with wi-fi enabled BlackBerry handheld devices. Fees are currently undisclosed.

Rival airlines American, Virgin America, and Alaska Air are said to be working on giving passengers online connectivity beginning next year. American and Virgin are reportedly working on allowing passengers to access e-mail, the internet, or office networks using laptops, iPhones, BlackBerrys and other portable gadgets with Wi-Fi connectivity.