iPad mini becomes in-flight entertainment for Hawaiian Airlines

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If you plan to fly to Hawaii soon, you may want to spend the travel time with an iPad mini. Hawaiian Airlines says it will offer the iPad as an entertainment option to passengers on more than a dozen aircraft starting September 1, including Boeing 767 flights.

The Apple tablet will be available for rental either before passengers board or during flight. According to the airline, 1,400 tablets will be offered from its Honolulu headquarters to the U.S. mainland, Asia and the South Pacific…

The minis will be loaded with more than 100 hours of movies, as well as TV shows and games.

Business Class travelers will be able to use the iPad mini for free while Economy Class have to pay either $15 at the game or $17 while inflight.

Blaine Miyasato, Hawaiian Airlines vice president of product development:

Hawaiian Airlines’ signature on-board hospitality is already very popular with travelers, but we wanted to go even further to ensure our customers’ travel experience is more enjoyable.

With the help of Bluebox Avionics, we’re building on our acclaimed inflight service by incorporating the latest in popular consumer tech products to enhance our in-flight entertainment options.

Although the report suggests the iPad mini is not designed to “completely replace” free seat-back entertainment already present, no doubt charging for something that once was free is a good thing for the corporate bottom line.

The service is being provided by Bluebox Avionics, a company that offers in-flight entertainment services to a number of smaller airlines.

While much of the news concerning iPads and airlines has focused on the cockpit, this in-flight entertainment movement could solve some sticky issues, particularly on long flights, such as to Hawaii or Asia.

Passengers, already burdened by layer after layer of airline fees, may be less hesitant to come up with $15 to watch the latest movie on a tablet. In addition, the move could solve the bothersome in-flight movie which usually you’ve seen 10,000 times before.