Skip to main content

Virgin America completes rollout of faster Gogo ATG-4 Wi-Fi across fleet

Want fast Wi-Fi speeds at 35,000 feet? Get on a Virgin America flight. The carrier announced that it is the first to offer the faster ATG-4 inflight Wi-Fi service from Gogo across its entire fleet. The new hardware offers speeds of up to 9.8 Mbps, which is three-times than that of Virgin America’s first-generation system.

ATG-4 uses directional antennas and dual modems on each plane to achieve the faster speeds, in addition to enhanced EV-DO technology on Gogo’s air-to-ground (ATG) networks. One reason why Virgin America can achieve a faster rollout (besides having just 44 planes in its fleet currently) is because ATG-4 is backward compatible, and it’s a lower-cost upgrade for the airline since it can utilize the existing hardware already installed.

Recommended Videos

Virgin America isn’t the only airline to offer Wi-Fi, but it’s the only carrier to offer it (and other tech amenities) consistently across its entirely fleet – it’s the winner of our “most tech savvy airline” award. The company boasts about being the airline of Silicon Valley, but ATG-4 is just a stopgap until even faster Wi-Fi is ready.

Last year, Gogo announced that Virgin America will be the launch partner for Gogo Ground to Orbit (GTO), a hybrid system that blends satellite technology with its ATG infrastructure. While 9.8 Mbps might be fast for ATG, it’s pokey for those of us used to faster speeds on the ground. GTO changes that: It will push speeds of up to 60 Mbps, and Gogo says its GTO setup, which uses both Ku-band satellites and ground technology, is more efficient and requires less fuel burn than strictly satellite systems. However, sources tell Runway Girl that Virgin America may even skip GTO technology entirely and opt for Gogo’s upcoming 2Ku satellite-based technology instead – an even faster system.

While the ATG-4 news is interesting, it’s the future we are looking forward to. Many airlines have already started retrofitting aircraft for faster satellite Wi-Fi, and Virgin Atlantic (Virgin America’s British cousin) announced it will roll out Gogo’s 2Ku technology in 2015. Perhaps finally, we can then stream YouTube and HBO Go videos to our iPads up in the air.

Les Shu
Former Digital Trends Contributor
I am formerly a senior editor at Digital Trends. I bring with me more than a decade of tech and lifestyle journalism…
Hyundai Ioniq 5 sets world record for greatest altitude change
hyundai ioniq 5 world record altitude change mk02 detail kv

When the Guinness World Records (GWR) book was launched in 1955, the idea was to compile facts and figures that could finally settle often endless arguments in the U.K.’s many pubs.

It quickly evolved into a yearly compilation of world records, big and small, including last year's largest grilled cheese sandwich in the world.

Read more
Global EV sales expected to rise 30% in 2025, S&P Global says
ev sales up 30 percent 2025 byd sealion 7 1stbanner l

While trade wars, tariffs, and wavering subsidies are very much in the cards for the auto industry in 2025, global sales of electric vehicles (EVs) are still expected to rise substantially next year, according to S&P Global Mobility.

"2025 is shaping up to be ultra-challenging for the auto industry, as key regional demand factors limit demand potential and the new U.S. administration adds fresh uncertainty from day one," says Colin Couchman, executive director of global light vehicle forecasting for S&P Global Mobility.

Read more
Faraday Future could unveil lowest-priced EV yet at CES 2025
Faraday Future FF 91

Given existing tariffs and what’s in store from the Trump administration, you’d be forgiven for thinking the global race toward lower electric vehicle (EV) prices will not reach U.S. shores in 2025.

After all, Chinese manufacturers, who sell the least expensive EVs globally, have shelved plans to enter the U.S. market after 100% tariffs were imposed on China-made EVs in September.

Read more