Airline offers in-flight voter registration app until November

More than 132 million Americans voted in the 2008 elections, but how many of them registered to vote during an airline flight? Likely none, but that might change this election year.

San Francisco-based Virgin America invites passengers on its flights to use smartphones to download an app to register to vote. The airline partnered with Rock the Vote for the novel voter registration drive that runs through November.

Fliers can scan a QR code on the seat back facing them and receive an election registration app on their mobile device. They also may pay for in-flight Wi-Fi and sign up immediately or wait until they land to access the app and sign up to vote. (In California, you have to register to vote by Oct. 22 to cast a ballot in the Nov. 6 election.)

The airline rolled out the registration drive Tuesday on an inaugural flight from San Francisco to Reagan National Airport in suburban Washington, D.C.

Of course, any flier with a Wi-Fi connection at 35,000 feet can register to vote by going to the Rock the Vote registration site or their state or county election websites. Now if only we could cast our ballots while flying too.