Following some not so great news yesterday regarding the Medallion Diamond MQD waiver, Delta made the headlines again today. Luckily for Delta enthusiasts, today’s news is actually positive. Today’s announcement from Delta also represents a positive shift for the airline industry as a whole. The news? Delta Air Lines announced beginning October 1, 2017 passengers can enjoy free in-flight messaging on all Gogo wifi enabled aircraft!
Per today’s press release:
Beginning Oct. 1, Delta Air Lines will become the first U.S. global carrier* to offer free mobile messaging, providing more customers access to free messaging than any other carrier. The airline will also have the most aircraft enabled with free messaging.
It’s always a good sign to have an asterisk in your press release… Delta claims they are the “first,” but they are only the first when compared to just United and American. Still, it’s an exciting change for Delta travelers.
Free In-Flight Messaging On Delta Flights
Free in-flight messaging on GoGo wifi has long been a perk for T-Mobile One customers. Delta is opening that benefit up to all passengers beginning this October and beyond. It’s exciting news because it represents an actual improvement to the passenger experience.
Although Delta made a big deal about this announcement today, it’s hardly a new benefit. Alaska Airlines launched free messaging earlier in 2017 and JetBlue offers free wifi on all flight to all passengers. Although free messaging is nice, free wifi for all would be a little more impressive.
Free Wifi For All?
That brings me to my next point. It must be just a matter of time until free wifi on all carriers is a reality. We’re more connected than ever and that trend isn’t going away anytime soon. I’m guessing within the next year we’ll see United and American allow free messaging. Then as in-flight wifi performance improves, we’ll see these legacy carriers offer free wifi on all flights. JetBlue already offers free in-flight wifi to all passengers so why can’t other airlines. Airlines need to start adding back benefits to promote loyalty since their loyalty programs are failing. Hopefully, within a few years, all passengers will have access to free wifi on all domestic flights.
I Don’t Necessarily Need In-Flight Messaging
While I’ve had this benefit since I switched to T-Mobile phone service, it isn’t a big deal to me. I’ve touched on this before. I love flying because from the moment the door closes to the moment it opens you’re cut off from the world (in theory). It’s the one place I feel like I can disconnect and escape the world for a while. The most memorable quote from the motion picture Sully is as follows:
Sully: “I never get over how beautiful it is up here.”
Skiles: “Life’s easier in the air.”
Sully: “I guess it is.”
Every time we take off I’m reminded of that line from the movie. If only for a couple of hours, when you’re in the sky there aren’t any problems. There’s nothing you can do from inside that metal can. All of life’s difficulties get put on hold until the door opens at your destination. Obviously I have a romantic opinion of air travel, but I’m sure I’m not the only person that feels this way.
That being said, it is nice to have the ability to text your ride home from the airport from the sky. On a flight from ORD-STL we were once re-routed to Kansas City. It was nice having the ability to text my parents that we were going to be late. I’m glad to see airlines are expanding this benefit, but it’s not going to make me chose Delta the next time I travel.
Final Thoughts
While I find Delta’s language in the press release comical, the news represents a positive shift in passenger comfort. As we become ever more connected it’s nice to remain partially connected in the skies. Hopefully, United and American will also chose to follow Delta in this decision. My guess is that in a few years all airlines will have no choice but to offer free in-flight wifi for all. Hopefully that proves true with time. Either way, I’m sure it’s only a matter of time until United offers this benefit. Then after a few weeks American will follow suit.
