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Oct. 13, 2009

With the help of new technology being developed by Panasonic, Lufthansa Airlines said today it will soon offer its passengers an in-flight WiFi and mobile phone service.

Dubbed FlyNet, Lufthansa said the new service will be available starting in May or June of next year.

Lufthansa added that it hopes to equip a major part of its long-haul planes in the service's first year, and eventually the entire long-haul fleet.

The company didn't say how much the new service would cost for passengers, but did say various price models are planned. It also said members of its frequent flier program, Miles & More, could use their points to buy the new service.

In the past, Lufthansa did launched a similar version of FlyNet, which offered Internet connections but no cell phone service, in 2003.

However, its partner, Boeing Corp.'s Connexion, withdrew the WiFi service in 2006 for lack of popularity.

Specifically, the airline said it would offer business travelers a range of new communications options on par with those available at powerful hotspots or upmarket hotels.

It will be interesting to see if other mojor European airline companies will follow suit.

In the U.S., there's already a good number of airlines that offer WiFi connectivity on some of its domestic flights, and plans to offer cell phone service is also being planned in the next few months.

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Source: Lufthansa Airlines AG.