It seems that Starlink – the Low Earth Orbit connectivity solution by SpaceX has picked up a new aviation customer, with United Airlines signing for installations across its fleet.
The agreement will be one the largest that Starlink has signed – which will cover over 1,000 aircraft installations.
United Airlines passengers will soon enjoy the same high-speed, low-latency internet service in the air that they enjoy on the ground. The solutions will allow gate-to-gate connectivity, whilst allowing access to services such as live TV and streaming services, social media, shopping, gaming and more, on seatback screens and personal devices simultaneously.
United expects to have Starlink on all United aircraft – more than 1,000 planes – over the next several years.
Testing begins in early 2025 with the first passenger flights expected later that year.
For the passenger, there is something very important – with United Airlines offering Starlink access free on all aircraft, allowing access over the globe where there is a Starlink signal
United Airlines is the largest airline across both the Atlantic and Pacific and will be the first carrier in the world to commit to offering Starlink service at this scale.
In addition to using Starlink connectivity on personal devices, United customers also will have access on their seatback screens.
According to the airline, the new service will also benefit United’s frontline employees – United pilots, flight attendants, technicians and gate agents all use mobile devices to help run the operation and serve customers. As United rolls out Starlink more broadly, it will give those teams the same rich capabilities in the air, as they have on the ground including when working in remote locations or when traditional services might be impacted like during power outages or natural disasters.
In Quotes
United CEO Scott Kirby said:
“Everything you can do on the ground, you’ll soon be able to do onboard a United plane at 35,000 feet, just about anywhere in the world,”
“This connectivity opens the door for an even better inflight entertainment experience, in every seatback – more content, that’s more personalized. United’s culture of innovation is, once again, delivering big for our customers.”
Gwynne Shotwell, President and Chief Operating Officer at SpaceX added:
“We’re excited to team up with United Airlines to transform the inflight experience,”
“With Starlink onboard your United flight, you’ll have access to the world’s most advanced high-speed internet from gate to gate, and all the miles in between.”
Another big win for SpaceX
Starlink continues to add to its airline roster – with Hawaiian Airlines having it operating live, other customers such as JSX, airBaltic, Westjet, Zipair Toyko and Qatar Airways.
However, the size of this order will pale compared to the amount of terminals and antennas deployed so far.
A Starlink Antenna at Aircraft Interiors Expo 2024 – Image, Economy Class and Beyond.
Some of you will question why now, and why are airlines starting to move to Low Earth Orbit connectivity. Whilst cost is a factor, LEO connectivity offers a lot more bandwidth than some solutions out there.
Economy Class and Beyond covered this in-depth earlier this year in our article “The Promise of LEO Inflight Connectivity – and its Path to Delivery“.
Suffice to say, for the passenger, there will be one less reach for a credit card to access the inflight Wi-Fi. For United Airlines, it provides the bandwidth from aircraft to shore, allowing fast connectivity when it matters for the airline – which in itself is an important thing.
And who knows, Delta also offers free inflight wifi and now United Airlines, maybe it might push other airlines down the path for free connectivity at the point of use.
It’s an interesting market to watch at this time.
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