Coolest thing since autopilot

I’ve just spent a quick weekend in Cape Town to see my god children (before they get any bigger behind my back). Having to rely on lifts to and from the airports meant that I ended up in the departure lounge hours before both flights with way too much time to kill.

Luckily, though, Wi-Fi abounds in airports, so it is easy to keep busy while enjoying a cup of coffee and waiting for your plane to begin boarding. Until now, the same couldn’t be said for the actual flight, where in-flight magazines or napping tend to be my entertainment of choice.

Notice what I said in that last sentence: until now.

Mango Airlines and G-Connect have teamed up to bring South Africans Wi-Fi in the sky! It is now possible to connect the internet from your cellphone, tablet, or laptop as soon as the seatbelt sign switches off.

Although still in its beta-phase, I didn’t experience any problems at all with my phone. I was able to access Twitter, Facebook, What’s App, my emails and messages, the works! If you’re less of a social networking addict than I am, I suppose you could also use the connection to catch up on work.

What I did struggle with, however, was getting my phone battery to last throughout the flight! Although, considering that it died at about the same time the crew told passengers to turn off all electronic devices, this fact may be a Mango conspiracy.

Another interesting feature that Mango is offering us mobile junkies is a range of applications that allow you to book and pay for flights from your tablet or the mobi-site on your phone. While it may help Mango target customers with limited internet access, I can already tell I’m going to love this option.

Considering that I got to the self-service kiosk with no idea what my e-ticket or booking reference number was (I travel super light – no check-in luggage for me), I wish I’d known about it sooner. Instead of rummaging through all my emails trying to find the one from Mango with my details (to the irritation of those queuing behind me), I could have it handy on my phone in no time!

The flight to Cape Town from Johannesburg may not be a long one, but time really can fly thanks to G-Connect. It’s a bit pricy, if you compare it to whatever you’re currently paying for data. However, so is a glass of wine! At that altitude, just be impressed that you can even buy data at all. I was, and I reckon it’s worth it!

The photo I took and posted to all my social networks from the plane as we left Cape Town