Wi-Fi reaches for the skies

BT is installing Openzone Wi-Fi access points in 80 British Airways customer lounges around the world.

The Wi-Fi enabling of the airline's executive lounges across the UK, Europe, US, Africa, South Africa and India will start with hotspots in London Heathrow and London Gatwick, which are scheduled to be working by the end of April.

BT said that airports have proved to be among the most popular locations for customers using Wi-Fi, and cited figures from its recent Wireless Broadband Week which put its existing airport access points at Heathrow and Gatwick in the top ranks of the most popular sites.

Steve Andrews, managing director of BT Mobility, said: "Flying, whether for business or pleasure, usually means spending some time waiting.

"Now customers have the opportunity to wirelessly log on to their company intranet to download the latest version of a presentation cost-effectively at broadband speeds, or to catch up on their emails or simply surf the web, making them as efficient as when they're in the office."

Paul Coby, chief information officer at British Airways, said in a statement: "The beauty of having wireless technology is that the customer can start up a wireless-enabled computer wherever they want to sit rather than having to use a dedicated area to have live internet access."