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Clear shuffles through its last upstanding citizen, tells the rest to fall in line
Let's face it: no one digs long security lines at airports. But if you reckoned a healthy amount of folks would be willing to pay $128 per year in order to bypass said lines at only a few airports in the world, you'd be wrong. After launching with high hopes back in 2005, Clear has quietly folded after failing to "negotiate an agreement with its senior creditor to continue operations." There's no word on what'll happen to existing paying customers, but we get the feeling they'll be directed towards a somewhat unpleasant creek sans a paddle. Or, you know, that poorly staffed lane to the left with 384 (give or take) cantankerous, shoeless travelers.[Image courtesy of Airliners]
Flight Display Systems shows off the first Blu-ray player for planes
With Blu-ray coming to our automobiles it's only proper that we should enjoy the same accoutrements in the air. Currently on display at the European Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (EBACE)Flight Display Systems has been shipping these out since April -- sorry for the delay in noticing, but we had to ditch the Engadget Force One for flight sharing, you know how it is -- to all those willing to pay the $4,879 price tag. For that price you can expect this beauty to slide in right where a DVD player used to fit, providing up to 1080p Blu-ray and DVD playback, an interface to Flight Display Systems Cabin Management System controls, IR remote or RS-485 control, plus Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD audio decoding. If discs aren't up to par for your Gulfstream, check after the break for the Jet Jukebox HD media server, sending up MPEG-1, -2 and -4 encoded video at up to 1080i resolution for $6,055.[Via Flight Global]
Found Footage: Controlling radio control aircraft with an iPhone
Take one radio-controlled airplane or helicopter, add a Wi-Fi router and some custom software, then mix in an iPhone's accelerometer and touch interface. What do you get? An R/C aircraft controller.Joshua Ziering loves to fly radio-controlled 'copters and planes, and he describes exactly how he went about developing an app and the associated hardware to control their flight by tilting his iPhone and moving throttle controls on the screen in a post on his blog. Check it all out in the video below. Gary Z. at MacMost.com -- thanks for the tip!
American bringing in-flight WiFi to over 300 planes
All hail the laggard! With pretty much every other US-based legacy carrier already on board, we were beginning to wonder if American Airlines even got the memo that in-flight WiFi was in serious demand. At long last, the company has made clear that it plans to equip more than 300 MD-80 and Boeing 737-800 aircraft used primarily in the United States with high-speed WiFi capability (over the next two years). If you'll recall, American announced early on that it was game for trialing the tech, but until today, it had yet to make a commitment large enough to make you consider signing up for its credit card and bankrolling those frequent flyer miles. We're expecting more details to emerge soon, but feel free to start pestering its agents with the whos, whats, wheres and whens.
Video: Terrafugia's flying car lifts off
We've had a lot of fun with Terrafugia over the last year or so, but we weren't exactly holding our breath in anticipation of the Transition's maiden flight. That said, we're definitely psyched to hear that the "roadable aircraft" went airborne in a super-secret test flight that took place in the early hours of March 5th at Plattsburgh International Airport. The vehicle left the ground for a good thirty-seven seconds, traveling some 3,000 feet. At a press conference today, the company's CEO Carl Dietrich remarked that "with this achievement, Terrafugia has set the stage for personal aviation." Which, considering how folks light up I-95 on an average workday, might at first blush seem somewhat unsettling -- but to each his own, right? According to the company, more than forty people have put down the $10,000 deposit for the new aircraft, which -- if all goes according to plan -- will be hitting the road sometime in 2011. Videos after the break.[Via Slashdot]
Australian continues to hone $300,000 flight simulator
Ha, and you thought your HotSeat Chassis was the next best thing to paying way too much to carry an appropriate amount of luggage on your next jaunt to paradise. Australia's own Matthew Sheil has been tinkering on his own personal flight simulator for over a decade now, but the latest iteration is just too good to ignore. Aside from setting a Guinness world record for his efforts, the man has poured over $300,000 into recreating the flying experience of a 747-400, which is dirt cheap compared to the $60 million that professional simulators generally run. Sheil flies virtually with legions of other enthusiasts around the world, and each year he hosts 15 folks as they rotate on an around-the-world flight that Qantas sponsors and where donation money is funneled to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Hit up the read link to get a real gist of what this thing is capable of, and feel free to go in with stupid high expectations.
High-powered, jet-mounted laser one step closer to flying the terrifying skies
The jet-mounted laser anti-missile system, brainchild of Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, Boeing and the US Air Force, has been an ongoing project for quite some time. Well, it's progressed into a final test phase, as evidenced by a new video, which shows the plane strapped with a pilot-controlled laser which is able to intercept missiles significantly earlier than other existing anti-missile tech. The project has plans to continue testing throughout this year, but will also need to be approved by the Obama administration if it is to come to fruition. Feel free to insert obligatory Dr. Evil joke in comments. Check out the video after the break, but fair warning: it autoplays.
Ryanair brings in-flight calling to 20 aircraft, but you'll never use it
Oh sure, the idea of having in-flight calling capabilities is pretty awesome, but actually biting the bullet and paying international roaming fees in order to indulge is likely to be a stretch. Ryanair, one of Europe's low-cost airlines, has finally equipped 20 of its planes (all traveling to / from Dublin) with in-flight mobile service after promising it around 1.5 years ago. Ryanair confesses that typical prices will be around €0.50 to send a text message and between €2.00 and €3.00 per minute to make and receive calls. In other words, you'll probably be keeping your conversations to yourself until you touch down, but at least it's there in case of emergency. Or something.[Via Gadling, thanks Conrad]
Gogo in-flight WiFi taking off in six Delta flights tomorrow
We already knew that Delta was pushing its in-flight WiFi plans ahead, and starting tomorrow, a half dozen MD-88 shuttle flights will be live with internet from 35,000 feet. As with Virgin America, Delta Air Lines will be relying on Aircell's Gogo technology, though it will go down as the first US carrier to initiate a "fleet-wide rollout." Eventually, over 300 domestic mainline aircraft will enable guests to surf the intarwebz from way up high, and you'll know if the one you're boarding is lit if you see one of the above pictured "Wi-Fi Onboard" logos on the boarding door. The launch flights -- which will run from December 16th through the 31st -- will provide gratis access to the web, while standard pricing of $9.95 on flights of three hours or less and $12.95 on flights of more than three hours will presumably kick in on January 1, 2009. Happy trails, and don't forget to give us a visit while you're up there.[Via Switched]
Delta pushes in-flight WiFi plans ahead, Gogo to hit 2,000 planes in 2009
Here's something that doesn't happen everyday with legacy airlines -- an announcement that something is actually ahead of schedule. After hearing that Delta would equip its entire US fleet with Aircell's Gogo in-flight WiFi in 2009, along comes a release from Aircell that says otherwise. In fact, it proclaims that "Delta Air Lines is expected to launch service before the end of 2008." Furthermore, the company has confessed that "most major US carriers are in advanced discussions with or are already contractually committed to Aircell," which certainly bodes well for avid travelers who take issue with long periods of disconnection. Aircell is hoping to have its in-flight internet tech installed in 2,000 commercial aircraft by the end of 2009 -- talk about making the friendly skies "friendly" again.[Image courtesy of Gadling]
Cellphone boarding pass gets tested, experience gets journaled
The biggest problem with a new scheme -- particularly one involving you, technology and the TSA -- is the very real fear that introducing something fresh into a traditional system will create more havoc than good. As Grant Martin of sister blog Gadling discovered, there's a reason that belief exists. Upon realizing that he could utilize a mobile boarding pass on his flight from Detroit to New York, he excitedly pulled up a one-time use QR code on his iPhone and shuffled through to security. Upon reaching the checkpoint, he was greeted by a less-than-enthusiastic boarding pass checker who seemed to take entirely too long to send him onward; at the next step, the agent seemed miffed and discomposed by the fact that the passenger couldn't simultaneously rid himself of all electronics and keep his boarding pass on his person while passing through the metal detector. In the end, Mr. Martin concluded that the system holds a lot of promise, but it's still going to take some time before everyone else working at the airport adjusts to the year 2008.
American Airlines getting in on that cellphone boarding pass fad
American Airlines has joined its peers at Continental in offering boarding pass barcodes that you can download to and display on your BlackBerry, iPhone, G1, or whatever have you. Presently the airline is only offering the option on domestic, non-stop flights departing from O'Hare -- LAX and Orange County will start on the 17th. Some eastern yanks might be asking, "What, no JFK or Logan? Where's the east coast love, AA?" Don't get too bent out of shape, boys and girls -- tech-savvy business travelers love their BlackBerries, so we could see this pop up just about everywhere before long.[Via Mobilitysite]
Avidyne's MLX770 provides pilots with two-way text messaging support
It's not that texting from planes is currently impossible, it's just not terribly reliable. Thanks to Avidyne's Q4-bound MLX770, however, all that is about to change. The two-way datalink receiver will not only enable pilots to have access to the radar mosaic for most of the world along with weather conditions, but it will add support for text messaging right from the MFD. And we're not talking about CPLDC -- we're talking bona fide SMS. To keep pilots from chatting away too much unnecessarily, the system will limit messages to 32 characters, and beyond that, each message sent will run between $1 and $2. And to think, we actually have the nerve to gripe about $0.20 texts...[Via FlightGlobal]
One Shots: An unexpected slice of life
When you hear Age of Conan, you probably think half-naked women, hack and slash, or perhaps 'bugs and unfinished content.' We're betting you never think of NPC children playing games, but that's just what today's One Shots shows off! This screenshot comes in to us from Graeymap (aka Pumpkinbum) who ran across this particular scene while out adventuring recently. Graeymap writes: Kids playing 'AiirPlaaaaane' in Old Tarantia reminds us of our carefree childhood days before heads rolled. It's certainly an unexpected thing to find a game like Age of Conan!Have you stumbled across any NPCs doing unexpected things? Perhaps you caught a bunch of them huddled together in a strange fashion due to a bug? Or perhaps you just want to show off the cool things that you're doing? Whatever your reason, whatever your game, grab those screenshots and send them to us at oneshots AT massively.com! We're all about seeing different game worlds, but we need you to send them in.%Gallery-9798%
Ask Engadget: Best PMP for long flights?
It's Thursday evening -- do you know what that means? Besides being the unofficial start of the weekend (party people, what's up?), it's time for another round of Ask Engadget. This week we've got a college freshman who's scared to death about 8-hour flights between his hometown and his new school... without gadgets. "I'm about to start college all the way across the country from my hometown. What this means for me, other than unprecedented freedom, adulthood, etc. [and a dose of this thing called the "real world," might we add] is lots of long flights back and forth. I'm looking for a device to entertain me during these trips. Is there anything out there that the readers can find that can play DVDs (ideally from any region, but that's not a deal-breaker) along with my AVI files and maybe some audio formats, too? The biggest issue here is battery life. I'm willing to spend $300 - $400 if I have to. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Cheers!" We're not so sure there's a portable DVD player / PMP hybrid out there that's extra longevous, but you can always get those discs onto a vanilla PMP with a little work. So, jet-setters -- what's the best solution here? Video playback really takes a toll on handheld battery life, but are there any hidden gems that just keep going and going? Hook a brother up, and then send in a question of your own to ask at engadget dawt com.
Northrop Grumman's aircraft-mounted laser moves forward in testing
We're beginning to think the US government is playing tricks with our head. Let's see, in late 2004, a Boeing anti-missile airborne laser achieved first light; in October of 2006, a laser-equipped 747-400F was deemed ready for testing; in January of 2007, an MD-10 with Northrop Grumman's Guardian anti-missile system took off; now, we're back to the testing stage? Something doesn't add up. Whatever the case, we're being fed information that leads us to think that the US Air Force's Airborne Laser has moved on to some "other" stage of testing. More specifically, engineers are making sure its "sequencing and control" functions are operating normally. Unsurprisingly, we're left in the dark as to when this thing will see action (again?), but consider our interest piqued for a reason The Man didn't intend.
American Airlines to test in-flight WiFi tomorrow
You heard right, folks. American Airlines is planning to open up the world wide web to passengers on board an unspecified round-trip flight from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport and Los Angeles. The Gogo service, provided via Aircell, will be free for patrons tomorrow, but will eventually run users $12.95 for flights greater than three hours and $9.95 for trips under said threshold. We're also told that more trials are expected to get going on flights between New York and San Francisco and New York and Miami, though no time frame is given for when the service would escape the beta stage and hit mass implementation. Additionally, the Gogo system is supposed to "prioritize the flow of data so that passengers downloading movies or large documents won't prevent other passengers from getting their email," so don't expect to use that excuse for not sending in those Q2 close reports.[Via Jaunted]
Icon's foldable, 2-seater plane unveiled, available now
Icon's foldable airplane is meant to fill that all-important gap between, say, hang gliders and commercial jets. This 2-seater Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) was unveiled last week to much applause by people with all sorts of cash. From a gadget standpoint, though, the Icon is worth a little deconstruction. It's powered by a rear-facing, reciprocating engine, can be configured for water landing, has a maximum takeoff weight of 1,320 pounds, has a max airspeed of 120 knots (138 mph), and features a dashboard that's meant to be familiar to car drivers. Unlike the Terrafugia, the Icon is not meant to drive up to your house, but we figure you'll be cruising around in some expensive SUV with this thing in tow anyway. And better yet, you can order this thing online with a credit card and a $5,000 deposit. Check out the video of the Icon's unveiling after the break.[Via FreshCreation]
JetBlue's LiveTV unit to snatch up Verizon's Airfone network
Nary a week after JetBlue expanded its in-flight internet services on BetaBlue comes news that the airline's LiveTV unit will be picking up Verizon's Airfone network. As you can glean, the purchase is being made in order to further "develop in-flight email and internet services," and while no purchase price was disclosed by either outfit, we are told that LiveTV will receive "100 air-to-ground US communications towers and Airfone's corporate and government aviation clients on January 1st." That's nice and all, but can't we get something out of this sooner?
Survey: 74% of US Americans say NO to in-flight calling, YES to data
In a Harris Interactive survey of 2,030 US adults of whom, 1,778 have actually flown in an airplane, a full three quarters say that cellphone usage on airplanes should be restricted to "non-talking features." In other words, email, texting, and surfing the Web. That's a pretty significant majority seeing as how the EC has cleared the way for calls within European airspace. 69% of consumers agreed that if voice calls are permitted, a special "talking zone" should be established so that other passengers are not interrupted. While the survey reflects our own opinions, take note that the results benefit sites like Yahoo! Mobile, the very company which commissioned the survey. It's also worth highlighting a comment made by a certain Miss Teen, South Carolina who said, "That some US Americans should be unable to do so, because, uh, some-a people out there in our nation don't have cellphones, and such as, maps." Good point.
