Australian carrier Qantas has announced it will soon be testing the use of the iPad2 for its in-flight entertainment device.

The pilot programme will see the flag carrier offer a streaming range of movies and other forms of entertainment directly to iPads via its wireless antenna. Each passenger will be given one of the units and can then browse and enjoy content through most of the flight via one of several ‘Q streaming’ WiFi points installed in the aircraft.

The trial is set to begin late next month and will run for six weeks through the beginning of December. However, it will be limited to only a single Qantas aircraft during the trial – a Boeing 767-300, which seats over 260 passengers.

According to Alison Webster, Qantas’ executive customer experience manager, the devices will boot directly to the specialized Q streaming application and will be locked from conventional iPad uses. She said this would be done so that if any customers try to ‘borrow’ one of the wireless devices it will not be able to be utilised outside of a Qantas aircraft.

Webster said to reporters in Seattle during a visit to Boeing’s factory that the move was a ‘potential breakthrough’ and could open the door for increased flexibility with in-flight entertainment content.