WiFi just flew ahead of 3G for mobile access...

The recent news about American Airlines got me thinking...

I use my Blackberry every day. It has become the single most important tool in my arsenal. I've noticed that others share my addiction - when on airplanes, the other business folk and I anxiously wait for the telltale jolt signifying that the wheels have touched the ground. A race immediately ensues to see who can hit their power button first.

The overlapping clicks of important people getting caught up with their co-workers and clients almost drown out the sound of the engines as the plane would arrive at the gate.

This frenzy is the result of being in the air without access to e-mails, the web, or a telephone. Inevitably once you land, all the "urgent" business you missed on your 30 minute shuttle from NY to Boston cross-country flight has piled up, requiring your immediate attention.

But: What if you have WiFi service while in the air?

Enabling airborne WiFi services creates signal and access in one of the few places it has been hitherto unavailable despite the huge population of business travelers that fly every day.

This is great for laptop users. The only catch is that from experience you need to have an empty seat next to you to get work done. If you don’t, you have to be a contortionist to create a work space to use a laptop in coach (don’t blame me for trying to save some money).

An alternative to the cost of a first class ticket would be to use your smart phone, iPhone, or Blackberry - if they have WiFi. All the potential bandwidth that exists over a cellular network is worthless in the air. For business travelers, having a small mobile device that takes advantage of this service means you can keep getting e-mails and even potentially make VoIP phone calls while flying. All the stresses of being out of contact when that urgent e-mail comes in, or missing an 11th hour request until it is too late are gone.

The bottom line: WiFi services are now more readily available in more places that I spend my time. I still need cellular networks for voice, but 802.11 has just taken a huge leap forward over cellular data networks for my primary connection while mobile.

It will take me a while of using in-air WiFi to stop the urge to be the first to power up when the wheels hit the ground.

One thing's for sure though ...I won't mind not having the stress of wondering what I missed while at 34,000.