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Internet Access 10 Kilometers High Up In The Air

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the well-isn't-that-special dept.

Marton writes "Lufthansa started rolling out their Flynet service in 2004. It is now available on several long-haul flights such as 411D - the one I'm sitting on right now. It is not cheap ($30 for the duration of a flight) nor is it very fast (satellite-based technology can't deliver the snappy response you are used to on the ground) but it is really, really nice. It's great to be able to check my email, catch up with some work, or just surf the web - airplane time used to be about napping, paperbacks or crappy movies. Now if only they'd let me have a cigarette I could actually be productive too. " Marton also gave us a traceroute which is attached... I'm going to Tokyo in May and crying that Northwest won't have this.

Here's a traceroute from my laptop which is currently on an A-340 10,000 meters up in the air, doing about 800 kilometers per hour, somewhere over the Atlantic bound for Munich.


C:\Documents and Settings\Marton>tracert www.slashdot.org

Tracing route to www.slashdot.org [66.35.250.151]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 2 ms 3 ms 2 ms 172.16.64.1
2 2 ms 2 ms 2 ms cbb-cds-psn.by.boeing [172.16.0.18]
3 3 ms 4 ms 2 ms sbs.by.boeing [172.31.0.1]
4 * * * Request timed out.
5 568 ms 626 ms 576 ms 10.8.20.38
6 703 ms 567 ms 583 ms ltn02r03-vlan25.connexionbyboeing.net [10.8.20.2]
7 580 ms 705 ms 582 ms ltn02r21-fa2-9.connexionbyboeing.net [10.8.16.25]
8 627 ms 582 ms 632 ms 10.8.16.33
9 579 ms 581 ms 581 ms ltn02r01-fa3-3.connexionbyboeing.net [10.8.16.130]
10 619 ms 582 ms 582 ms ltn02r02-fa3-3.connexionbyboeing.net [10.8.16.131]
11 581 ms 582 ms 665 ms 12.125.155.5
12 655 ms 912 ms 1072 ms gbr1-a31s1.dvmco.ip.att.net [12.127.4.134]
13 1144 ms 1612 ms 1939 ms gbr1-p60.la2ca.ip.att.net [12.122.1.29]
14 1500 ms 712 ms 580 ms tbr2-p013301.sffca.ip.att.net [12.122.12.133]
15 613 ms 579 ms 582 ms 12.122.80.57
16 589 ms 608 ms 790 ms dcr1-so-3-0-0.sanfranciscosfo.savvis.net [192.205.32.110]
17 588 ms 605 ms 582 ms dcr2-loopback.SanFranciscosfo.savvis.net [206.24.210.100]
18 609 ms 1774 ms 1079 ms bhr1-pos-0-0.SantaClarasc8.savvis.net [208.172.156.198]
19 610 ms 968 ms 1108 ms csr1-ve243.SantaClarasc8.savvis.net [66.35.194.50]
20 1109 ms 886 ms 998 ms 66.35.212.174
21 630 ms 860 ms 994 ms star.slashdot.org [66.35.250.151]

Trace complete.

36 of 366 comments (clear)

  1. If you need slashdot on a plane... by PyWiz · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...you might be addicted.

    --
    -py
  2. Will $30 more also get you smoking rights? by flowerp · · Score: 3, Funny

    If cou can pay $30 for Internet, try paying $30 for smoking. Let's see how far that will get you.

    --
    --- Eat my sig.
    1. Re:Will $30 more also get you smoking rights? by Richard_at_work · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I dont think the safety rules are over the top. You are at 37,000 feet, if you have any sort of emergancy at that altitude its going to take you time to get on the ground, and then evacuate the aircraft, so its a case of limit dangers to only those necessary. Why endanger the aircraft needlessly jsut to pander to someones personal addiction, because thats what it is?

    2. Re:Will $30 more also get you smoking rights? by anonicon · · Score: 3, Funny

      "2) It's FEDERAL LAW. No one smokes on an airplane, period. Are they supposed to just throw away the law because some addicted nut pulls out a helmet?"

      Depends. Are we talking about the Lesser Helmet of +5 Charisma for 8,000GP, or the Greater Helmet of +10 Charisma for 24,000GP?

      >;-)

    3. Re:Will $30 more also get you smoking rights? by JonyEpsilon · · Score: 4, Funny

      I'm confused. Are you talking about smoking or slashdot ?

    4. Re:Will $30 more also get you smoking rights? by wasted · · Score: 4, Informative

      ...I don't think there are any cases of planes crashing or otherwise coming to harm because of cigarettes.

      I think (not totally sure) that the cause of the lavatory fire in Air Canada 797 on June 2, 1983, could have been a cigarette.

      I couldn't find a good linkable reference, but I think the 25 fatalities on an Ilyushin 18B at Guangzhou-Baiyun airport in 1982 was also caused by a fire started by a cigarette.

      Another example (July 11th, 1973) can be found here.

    5. Re:Will $30 more also get you smoking rights? by LnxAddct · · Score: 5, Insightful

      You have a problem and you need help. You are trying to justify smoking on a plane. You can't go a few hours without a smoke? People are doing a favor for your life, how many tmes has it been proven that smoking kills you, and kills you quickly. I'm so glad my city is banning smoking, you people contribute nothing but ill effects to the rest of society. Take a hint and try to quit, its a dirty disgusting habit that shortens your life. It doesn't even calm you until you've become addicted to it. Stop trying to jsutify your actions and instead correct them. Don't force your smoke on other passengers or employees of the airport. If you want to kill yourself, confine it to your house.
      Regards,
      Steve

    6. Re:Will $30 more also get you smoking rights? by rocketfairy · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Wow, smokers contribute nothing to society? Take that, Winston Churchill!

  3. Boeing technology by thammoud · · Score: 5, Interesting

    A link to the real provider to this technology.
    http://www.connexionbyboeing.com/

    1. Re:Boeing technology by Abstract_Me · · Score: 4, Funny

      The article says its slow and expensive but the connexionbyboeing website advertises it being fast and cheap! which one do i beleive?!

    2. Re:Boeing technology by magarity · · Score: 4, Funny

      I find it quite amusing that Connexion by Boeing is being used on an Airbus.

    3. Re:Boeing technology by MathFox · · Score: 4, Informative
      If you've read the connexionbyboeing website a bit better: The plane has an 1 Mbit connection (or better). Unfortunately the data is routed via a satellite, so the link has pretty high latency.

      One of my friends has downloaded a Knoppix CD on one of his transatlantic flights.

      --
      extern warranty;
      main()
      {
      (void)warranty;
      }
  4. Re:NICE!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The typical price of the ticket is $600 economy to $3000 business... does another $30 for internet access really matter.

  5. Is $30 really that bad? by Demonspawn · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I havn't flown in a LONG time, so I don't know what the price would be for a long flight like the ones that have this service. I realize compared to the prices of ground service it's horably expensive (vs. a month long contract), but thinking of it as an 'add on' to the ticket, what percentage of the ticket cost is it? If you are dealing with a $300 ticket, then it's only a 10% rider.

    Of course, if you are taking one of those $59 flights I see advertised, you'd be thinking the cost is insane.

  6. Mile High Club? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    For all the slashdot geeks flying on Lufthansa, this also gives you the opportunity to join the mile high club - solo!

  7. Skynet anyone? by Billy_D_Goat · · Score: 4, Funny

    Would this be any relation to Skynet perhaps? Flynet: Skynet's little sister.

  8. Re:NICE!! by magarity · · Score: 5, Informative

    if they made it a bit cheaper it would be better though?

    They have to make a trade off between making it so more people can afford it versus the relatively slow connection. If you're going to pay any noticable amount for such a small time frame as a single flight then you want to get your money's worth. If too many people use it then it slows to a crawl. Then everyone complains. Keeping the price high is a way of ensuring there is a reasonable amount of bandwidth to the few who do pay.

  9. 0wned! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny


    Well, you should have updated you XP to SP2 before putting you IP address on /. dude!

    Now let us see if we can crank up the volume and start playing back those interesting "documentaries" you've got in:

    c:\Program Files\Accounting\Private\Pervysnsluts_2004_njr_rel .avi

  10. Heh by tmasky · · Score: 5, Funny

    I wonder who's insecure laptop is going to join the Mile High club first.

  11. Re:Mwuhahahahha by raju1kabir · · Score: 4, Insightful
    ping -f -s1460 172.16.64.1

    Um, you do know what network 172.16 is in, right? Next will you be launching a DOS against 127.0.0.1?

    --
    "Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all other countries because you were born in it." -- GBS
  12. Wow! by LiquidCoooled · · Score: 3, Funny

    Step 11 on the traceroute was really interesting.

    11 581538 ms 582667 ms 6659876 ms mgs.nasa.mars.net

    --
    liqbase :: faster than paper
  13. Re:Mwuhahahahha by BLAG-blast · · Score: 3, Funny
    ping -f -s1460 172.16.64.1

    Nooooooooooooooooooooo! That's my IP address dude!

    --
    M0571y H@rml355.
  14. sharing? by cbc1920 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    What's to stop someone from purchasing the access and then sharing it with everyone on the plane through an ad-hoc wireless bridge? (except for those pesky regulations)

  15. Re:NICE!! by mqx · · Score: 4, Insightful

    if they made it a bit cheaper it would be better though?

    Sure, and it be better if high-end computing servers were cheaper too, but really: a global plane based relatively high speed internetwork is not cheap to build and run: we're talking about fitting equipment into planes, trials and testing, satellite bandwidth, the cost of satellite services, etc. This is not inexpensive.

    I actually think $30 is not too bad for what you're getting. It's not for everyone, but it's within the reach of many people, considering many of us think nothing about easily spending $30 on a restaurant meal.

    Not only this, but international airlines are not actually loaded with revenue that they could absorb the cost of this service into existing price you pay, and really, I wouldn't want my mother (a non internet user) to pay higher trans-atlantic fares so that she can subsidise web browsers: user pays!

    I'm sure we'll see the service expand and improve in the future, but for now, it's a fairly decent start. I'm not on a 6 figure salary, yet I'd have no problems paying for this service on the 2-3 12+ hour flights I make per year.

  16. Re:VoIP by melonman · · Score: 3, Funny

    once the latency goes down a bit

    What, when the speed of light increases a bit? I'm typing this on a terrestial satellite connection, and that's about the latency you get.

    You can do VoIP over this sort of connection, you just have to get used to the fact that there's about a second's lag, and, if you can hear yourself on the remote speakers, a 2-second echo.

    Here's part of my traceroute...

    3 firewall (192.168.1.1) 3.067 ms 7.553 ms 12.684 ms
    4 172.31.254.253 (172.31.254.253) 4.062 ms 5.199 ms 6.160 ms
    5 172.16.128.19 (172.16.128.19) 631.013 ms 583.867 ms 1562.693 ms
    6 172.16.64.61 (172.16.64.61) 1658.335 ms 1537.707 ms 1099.666 ms
    7 172.16.100.1 (172.16.100.1) 1156.839 ms 1302.108 ms 1372.232 ms
    8 iamrt01p.idc.aramiska.net (172.16.101.254) 794.488 ms 528.926 ms 569.041 ms
    9 213.181.59.142 (213.181.59.142) 602.372 ms 606.007 ms 732.337 ms
    10 cbu-pcbru11-pecbru21-pos31.car.belbone.be (213.181.59.198) 707.791 ms 782.617 ms 619.338 ms
    11 so-6-1-2-bcr1.bru.cw.net (206.24.147.189) 743.572 ms 759.283 ms 732.355 ms
    12 so-5-1-0-dcr2.par.cw.net (195.2.10.34) 906.991 ms 770.496 ms 628.550 ms
    13 as0-dcr1.par.cw.net (195.2.10.161) 904.086 ms 658.604 ms 1547.670 ms
    14 so-0-0-0-dcr1.was.cw.net (195.2.10.117) 670.472 ms 822.322 ms 698.954 ms
    15 dcr1-so-2-0-0.Washington.savvis.net (206.24.238.17) 620.367 ms 654.039 ms 711.492 ms
    16 dcr2-loopback.SanFranciscosfo.savvis.net (206.24.210.100) 848.040 ms 795.551 ms 879.444 ms
    17 bhr1-pos-0-0.SantaClarasc8.savvis.net (208.172.156.198) 1360.829 ms 994.331 ms 758.175 ms
    18 csr1-ve240.SantaClarasc8.savvis.net (66.35.194.34) 1306.824 ms 1061.993 ms 861.418 ms
    19 66.35.212.174 (66.35.212.174) 1148.671 ms 1076.630 ms 696.751 ms
    20 slashdot.org (66.35.250.150) 983.516 ms 1103.163 ms 778.011 ms
    --
    Virtually serving coffee
  17. Re:Mwuhahahahha by drdink · · Score: 4, Informative

    Please stop propagating the myth of classful routing. 172.16.0.0 is neither class B, class C, or any other class. It is 172.16.0.0/12. This is CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing). Please see RFC 1519 about CIDR and RFC 3330 about 172.16.0.0/12 and other special use IP addresss.

    --
    Beware, Nugget is watching... See?
  18. Re:The new Boeing/Airbus consortium by Tx · · Score: 4, Informative

    It's not just for Boeing aircraft. From the connexion web site:

    Installation
    The system can be installed on any aircraft with a seating capacity of 100 or more during a scheduled maintenance interval. Connexion by Boeing is currently working with aircraft manufacturers to develop the capability for in-line production installations.

    --
    Oh no... it's the future.
  19. This could make air travel pay off! by AtariAmarok · · Score: 4, Funny

    1. Pay $30 for email in airplane
    2. Login and check email
    3. Receive Nigerian offer to give you $15,000
    4. Profit!

    --
    Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
  20. Slashdot on a Plane by AtariAmarok · · Score: 5, Funny

    Flight Attendant: "Sorry, sir. After you posted that message about the iPod on Slashdot, Cowboy Neal notified us to mod you down. You can't sit in first class anymore. Please find a seat in coach. Oh, and if you do it again? You will have to sit on the wing with the other gremlins. Gremlins? That is what we call trolls here. Look outside and you will see a few right now GNAA'ing on the wings."

    --
    Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
  21. planes did in fact crash... by Jussi+K.+Kojootti · · Score: 3, Informative

    There have been many fires in aeroplanes due to smoking. I believe a Boeing 707 even crash landed near Orly (Paris) in the 70s because of that. The pilots were the only ones that didn't asphyxiate.

  22. The smokers forced the ban by AtariAmarok · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I remember when it was allowed. Smokers routinely smoked in the non-smoking section, and threw burning trash on the floor of the plane.

    --
    Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
  23. Re:NICE!! by rkv · · Score: 3, Insightful

    well if the mobile phone companies can convince the FCC that mobile phones can be used in the air then this 30$ service would'nt be necessary as high speed broadband connection would be available :D. so ya i still think its too much.

  24. Tell me about it! by AtariAmarok · · Score: 4, Funny
    "And while we are at it, LEARN TO LINE WRAP. Trust the browser to do it for you, man"

    Tell me about it
    There is this one AC
    Who types every troll
    like this. It makes them
    all look like Haiku.

    --
    Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
  25. Profit! by Gudlyf · · Score: 5, Funny
    1. Pay the $30 fee for your in-flight connection.
    2. Connect your own pocket wireless AP to your laptop.
    3. Offer the rest of the plane access to your AP for $10.
    4. Profit! (?)
    --
    Trolls lurk everywhere. Mod them down.
  26. Re:Back in September... by Marton · · Score: 3, Informative

    They (Lufthansa) have AC outlets in business class (and of course in first), it accepts a European or a non-grounded US plug. They even have USB outlets for charging a PDA...

    They also have a CAT-5 connector right next to the USB port. It does not seem to be hooked up to anything meaningful though.

  27. Re:NICE!! by KanSer · · Score: 4, Interesting

    30$ is not bad for a trans-atlantic hop. I've done San fran to Frankfurt on Lufthansa many many times, and while the service is impeccable, those 10 hours sure would go easier with a net connection.

    For any of Lufthansa's long haul flights 30$ is very reasonable. The next logical step would be to wire up every seat with an ethernet port (which I imagine this service provides) and set up a LAN. Think about the new A380s, formerly the A3XX or the 400-800 seat true double decker planes.

    800 people, lets say San Fran to Frankfurt or Munich, what do you think the odds are that at least 20 people have a laptop with some games. Hello, wouldn't fragging at 35,000 feet be awesome? Even better if the plane hosted old-school games (doom 2, quake 1) so people wouldn't need to all have it installed.

    --
    • MOD PARENT UP by Anonymous Coward Wednesday April 20, @4:20