Spy the ground under your plane with 'Glass Bottom Jet' technology
Wish you could have Superman's view of the world as you soar over farms, lakes, and mountains?
Now you can. Delta has introduced their Fly Delta App for iPad (and iPhones) and it's the next best thing to flying in a glass bottom jet, because it lets you see the ground whizzing past beneath your plane.
The Fly Delta app was released last week as part of their new $140 million US commitment to technology. In addition to upgrading their website, mobile apps, and airport kiosks, the app's coolest feature is the "Glass Bottom Jet". This lets passengers using in-flight wi-fi to see the scenery rushing below the aircraft. It's like riding in a spy plane as you cruise over middle America.
The Glass Bottom Jet feature includes maps and social networks. You can read about Mount Rushmore and the Grand Canyon as you fly over South Dakota and Arizona, and you can tease friends in real time as you roar over their homes.
According to Business Insider, the Glass Bottom Jet app "feeds real-time data of your flight position into maps and satellite imagery of the surrounding area. It then combines that information with the destination guides, photographs and social-media gizmos for which travel websites are more commonly known."
There are two down sides: (a) at this point, the footage isn't live, and (b) to use the app, you have to pay for Delta's wi-fi.
However, if you're a geography nerd, it's a fun and educational way to pass the time on your business trip to Miami. Plus, if you're simply a trash-talking rabble-rouser, the app's a fun way to heckle people on the ground and threaten to drop soda cans on their heads.
You can download Delta's free app here.
-- Ken Hegan
Bing: Coolest airplane apps
Read more of Ken’s MSN travel stories here
Follow Ken on Twitter: @KenHegan
Photo courtesy Delta Air Lines
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