Facebook for Free on a Flight in February

Ford sponsors free Facebook on Gogo Inflict Internet in February: All of the airlines offering Aircell's Gogo service are part of the promotion, which puts Facebook outside the paywall. Google has sponsored free service at various times at airports and on planes to promote its offerings.

Aircell should love this deal, because it will expose potentially millions of casual travelers to a service that they might otherwise see as expensive, impossible, or uninteresting. Because in-flight Internet had a big flame-out with Connexion by Boeing (which worked just fine but didn't make its numbers), many people may carry the notion that mile-high Wi-Fi doesn't work and isn't worth messing with.

By providing Facebook access, the "number one website visited by travelers using Gogo," Aircell says, Gogo trains people to want the service in the future. I expect this pumps numbers way up in subsequent months, especially for mobile access.

JetBlue Sets Mid-2012 for In-Flight Internet