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WestJet to offer Wi-Fi in 2014: CEO

Darah Hansen
A Westjet Boeing 737-700 takes off at the International Airport in Calgary, Alberta, May 3, 2011. REUTERS/Todd Korol

Email? On an airplane?

Haven’t we always been told to ensure we’ve turned off all our electrical devices when we board a plane? That it was a matter of life or death.

Forget what you’ve heard because those days are long gone.

Indeed, WestJet is about the become the first airline in Canada to ask you power up your devices during flight.

The Calgary-based company is finalizing a deal with an as-yet unnamed Internet provider that will enable inflight wireless service.

Gregg Saretsky, WestJet CEO, told the Calgary Herald the service could be ready in time for Christmas.

“We haven’t signed a contract yet, but we’re getting very close to the short strokes on that,” Saretsky told the newspaper.

Inflight Wi-Fi service is already popular in the United States and many international carriers. According to the Herald, Air Canada offers internet connectivity on some of its flights, but only while the planes are flying over U.S. air space.