Hi Johnfowler06,
Thanks for participating in the Apple Support Communities.
It looks like sometimes you're not automatically taken to the Welcome page (to sign in or acknowledge terms of service for that network) when using "captive" Wi-Fi networks in airports and hotels. This page should appear automatically after joining one of these networks.
If you're seeing a Google search page when going to captive.apple.com, it sounds like you may already have internet access at that location; however if you still can't use the internet in those cases, here are some steps to try.
First, turn off auto-join and auto-login for that network:
Use captive Wi-Fi networks on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
- Tap Settings > Wi-Fi.
- Tap next to the network name.
If you don't want to connect automatically, turn off Auto-Join. To see the Welcome screen the next time that you connect to the network, turn off Auto-Login.
Next, forget the Wi-Fi network and try connecting again:
If you need help with your Wi‑Fi password
Tap Settings > Wi‑Fi > > Forget this network. Then try to rejoin.
Additionally, if you haven't already updated your iPad Air to the latest version of iOS, you may want to do that as well:
Update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
Let us know if this helps.
Cheers.