By Joe Brancatelli

The progress of travel WiFi continues to be a an erratic one. On the plus side, Alaska Airlines has begun installing in-flight WiFi on its aircraft. Six of the carrier’s Boeing 737s now offer GoGo Inflight connections. And Delta Air Lines says 500 of its domestic aircraft are now wired for Gogo’s WiFi service.

On the flip side, however, it looks like Continental Airlines won’t be installing Gogo’s in-flight WiFi service any time soon. The airline announced a test of the WiFi system in January and said it would wire 21 Boeing 757s by the second quarter. But an internal memo claims the service has been delayed until Continental can work through “connectivity solutions in the context of a merged carrier.” Continental is due to merge with United Airlines, which uses Gogo on its transcontinental p.s. flights.

Oh, one more bit of news: Amtrak says the three-month test of WiFi on its Acela Express East Coast Corridor trains has convinced the rail system to expand the availability of the service. WiFi will continue to be free on Acela trains, it will be added to the slower “regional” trains on the runs between Boston and Washington and will also beinstalled on trains in California.

Joe Brancatelli is editor and publisher of JoeSentMe.com, a non-commercial Web site for business travelers. Copyright 2009 by Joe Brancatelli. Licensed by contract for Orbitz use.

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