Filed at 6:41 p.m. ET

SEATTLE (AP) -- The Federal Aviation Administration has certified Connexion by Boeing's airborne communications network to bring e-mail and other Internet services to airlines and their passengers, the company said Tuesday.

The certification is the first of its kind for a broadband network linking satellite and ground networks to commercial aircraft during flight, Boeing said.

Tests for the three-month certification process were conducted aboard a specially modified Boeing 737-400, to verify both that the system worked and that it did not interfere with other aircraft systems or the plane's structural integrity or handling characteristics.

The final test summary paperwork necessary for certification was e-mailed to FAA officials in Los Angeles from the test aircraft while it was flying at 35,000 feet above New Mexico.

Boeing says Connexion will bring high-speed Internet and e-mail to airborne passengers, along with real-time television and other entertainment.

Further tests will continue aboard the aircraft this year to make sure the system is reliable. Boeing plans to begin trial service in late 2002 with German airline Lufthansa.

United, American and Delta airlines originally intended to be equity partners in Connexion, but pulled out after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks devastated the airline industry.

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