United Express two-class regional jets sport free film fare aloft
By Jerome Greer Chandler Mon Aug 24, 2015
In-flight entertainment isn’t just for full-size aircraft anymore. It’s rapidly penetrating the regional jet ranks. Case-in-point: United Express’ announcement that it’s installing free personal device entertainment on its fleet of more than 120 Wi-Fi-fitted E170, E175 and CRJ700 RJs.
The only catch, of course, is that you have to bring along your own personal device onboard: your laptop computer, Android or iOS gadget – much as you do on fellow U.S. airline Southwest. Southwest offers flight tracking, games, shopping and DISH TV content.
The United Express menu includes movies like “Birdman,” “The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” and the “Taken” trilogy. Calm the kids by clicking on “The LEGO Movie” – or maybe “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.”
United says content isn’t confined to film. There are expanded television offerings too – “Mad Men,” “Veep” and “Orange is the New Black” among them.
United claims to offer one of the planet’s largest free selections of streaming airborne entertainment. It’s branding the set-up “United Private Screening.”
The move makes sense for United. With regional jets doing lots of the heavy lifting these days, and RJs getting bigger, offering flyers a consistent service product is important. That’s one of the reasons U.S. airlines have been adding first class sections to their larger regional jets. Now, some of those cabins sport entertainment, and it’s gratis.
Just add your own screen.
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