If you had to make a list of locations that have given you Wi-Fi headaches, one of the places that might be on this list is the airport. Although there have been improvements, most airports still have connectivity issues that can be frustrating. What is even worse then an airport, is trying to use Wi-Fi on an airplane.
With the amount of travelers that go in and out of airports and airplanes on a daily basis for work and/or personal reasons, one would think that these locations would offer the most when it comes to connecting to the Internet. However, that is just not the case.

According to a survey with over 2,000 recent travelers, more than 60 percent said airports and airlines are still struggling to meet mobility expectations for consumers.
“Wi-Fi is and has been the highest priority for travelers, yet satisfaction levels have remained largely the same - with approval for airport Wi-Fi actually decreasing by 4 percent, and improving for in-flight Wi-Fi by a little more than 1 percent, since this time last year,” Mike Benjamin, CEO of FlightView said. “With more travelers using smartphones at the airport, and 82 percent using them in-flight – improving Wi-Fi is absolutely critical to improving the overall travel experience.”
People want to be able to stay connected to their phones at all times. It’s not a crazy request from travelers. Think how many times you use your phone on a daily basis. Now imagine you are traveling for work and are unable to get calls, send E-mails; respond to people in a timely fashion. These are things that travelers want to be able to do.
Although airports and airlines have tried to keep consumers interested with new massage stations, talking holograms, and other forms of technology it’s just not enough. Almost 84 percent of the people interviewed said they want mobile access, 76 percent said they want the ability to view security wait times, while 59 percent said they would love to be able to track missing luggage from their devices.
"Improving technology and infrastructure are massive undertakings for any airport or airline, but as we move further into an era of mobile and self-service dominance, these capabilities will become especially vital from both the travelers' and providers' perspective," said Benjamin.
Edited by Stefania Viscusi
View all articles