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Computerworld - American Airlines Inc., United Air Lines Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc. last week announced plans to launch broadband airborne Internet service on 1,500 aircraft, with initial service slated to start in the second half of next year.

The three airlines are teaming up with The Boeing Co. and initially planning service on domestic U.S. and trans-Atlantic routes over satellite transponders leased from Loral Space & Communications Ltd. in New York and General Electric Co. Boeing has yet to sign an agreement for satellite capacity across the Pacific, Boeing spokesman Terrance Scott said.

Internet in the Air American, Delta and United plan to deliver broadband Internet service to 1,500 aircraft starting in the second half of next year in partnership with Boeing. The service: Provides raw download speeds of 20M bit/sec. and uploads of 1M to 1.5M bit/sec., but partners set guaranteed minimum connection to individual passengers at 56K bit/sec. Will be offered on domestic and trans-Atlantic routes; no date set for the start of trans-Pacific service. Will be priced initially at $20 per hour, then $10 per hour as usage picks up. Competes with rival Tenzing, which has deals with Virgin Atlantic, Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific.

The Connexion by Boeing service will provide raw data speeds of 20M bit/sec. to the aircraft, with upload speeds from the planes of between 1M and 1.5M bit/sec., according to Scott. The minimum guaranteed speed to a passenger will be 56K bit/sec., or the equivalent of a dial-up modem. Scott couldn't provide an average data transmission speed but said passengers would be slowed to 56K bit/sec. only if "all 300 passengers on the plane hooked in at the same time."

Seattle-based Boeing and its partners are still developing pricing for the Internet-in-the-sky service, Scott said, with initial rates "running about $20 an hour, coming down to about $10 an hour when the service ramps up."

Seattle-based Tenzing Communications Inc. has already signed deals to provide similar Internet and e-mail service to a number of foreign carriers, including Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. in Hong Kong, Singapore Airlines Ltd. and Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. in London. Tenzing downplayed last week's announcement by Boeing, Chicago-based United, Atlanta-based Delta and Fort Worth, Texas-based American.

Peter Lemme, vice president of business development at Tenzing, said his company has both "a time-to-market . . . and price advantage over Boeing."

Although Tenzing has yet to firm up its prices, Lemme said the cost to passengers "will be substantially less" than Connexion by Boeing. Lemme maintains that Tenzing's ability to provide service today on trans-Pacific routes is another advantage over Connexion.