n-flight technology
JetBlue also looked at technology inside the plane, first rolling out free inflight Wi-Fi as the foundation to support all other devices and technologies. Called Fly-Fi, it can handle 12 megabits per second per passenger, but if you want to stream a video, for example, you’d have to pay for the faster speed. Sundaram says they weren’t satisfied with any of the inflight Wi-Fi offerings in the market so they went a different route.
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SEE ALL Go The JetBlue for Apple Watch app is "all about convenience and efficiency," according to the airline.
“Three years ago when we launched this program, we had two choices -- either to go out of a market product and launch it which is very slow, very expensive, or do something that is really, really skipping a generation of itself,” says Sundaram. “We chose to launch our own satellite from Kazakhstan, in partnership with ViaSat.”
The addition of Wi-Fi gave JetBlue the capability to roll out iPad Minis for flight attendants and crew members. The iPads not only replace the heavy flight manuals, but provide a single customer view to deliver more targeted customer service.
For example, using the Inflight Service Assistant app, flight attendants can view a seat map, click on a customer and know if they are a Mosaic loyalty member or if it’s their birthday. Flight attendants can also see if a passenger has a connecting flight and in the case of a delay, suggest other flight options.
The iPads are also equipped to accept Apple Pay from customers. As the first U.S. airline to offer Apple Pay, JetBlue developed a reader that attaches to the tablets and scans the iPhones using NFC technology for inflight purchases, like snacks or Birchbox cosmetics boxes.
Sundaram says embracing Apple Pay was all about working toward the more simplified customer experience. “When you do transactions inside the plane or in the airport, it’s much easier for you to use your phone to touch and go vs. taking out your credit card to handle that transaction,” he says.
The iPads also include an app for the flight manual, a language translator, a point-of-sale system and other JetBlue employee apps. The company expects to have all flight attendants equipped with the tablets by the end of this spring.
The latest rollout for the company is its Apple Watch app, which was just released last week. It features capabilities such as a mobile boarding pass, flight updates and the capability to make inflight purchases with Apple Pay.