Alaska Airlines Offers Free In-Flight Messaging

Alaska Airlines has proven itself as one of the most innovative airlines in recent months, with brand-new flights and in-flight amenities, and its historic biofuel flight from Seattle (SEA) to Washington, D.C.(DCA), in November.

As another step in the pioneering direction, Alaska Airlines opened up free mobile messaging on all of its WiFi-equipped flights, giving travelers yet another reason to choose the Seattle-based airline. The new messaging service, provided by Gogo, is free of charge and operates through technologies that work over a WiFi network, such as iMessage, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger.

While Alaska is not the first carrier to offer in-flight messaging, it is the first to offer the service for free. The amenity cuts out the extra fee for Gogo streaming service, a great added perk for anyone flying on the airline that hopes to maintain conversations throughout their flight.

The new service comes after the airline’s recent acquisition of Virgin America, a carrier that had a strong following among younger generations who place a higher value on mobile communication on flights. Currently, Free Chat is only available on Alaska Airlines flights, but there has been talk about expanding the service to Virgin America.