On September 13, 2024, United Airlines announced a landmark deal with SpaceX which will see its whole fleet fitted with Starlink’s high-speed internet connectivity.
The US airline will start testing Starlink onboard its aircraft in early 2025. If everything goes according to plan, it expects to begin rollout on passenger flights just a few months later, before the end of next year.
Although no specific timeframe has been provided for the completion of the project, given the size of United Airlines’ fleet, which contains close to 1,000 aircraft, the expectation is that it will take several years for Starlink to be available in each one.
in the same announcement, United Airlines also confirmed that it will be providing gate-to-gate internet access for free to all passengers.
This represents something of a game-changer when it comes to passenger experience and habits.
At present, United Airlines offers internet on many of its flights, but at a cost.
Fees depends on the package, loyalty program status and flight duration, but can typically range from $6 per hour on long –haul flights to $10 per flight on short-haul ones.
In addition to this change in pricing model, the low-latency and high-speed that characterize Starlink’s service will also enable passengers to use inflight broadband for a whole variety of purposes. These should include live streaming, certain types of collaborative online work and gaming, inflight usage of which is currently limited.
The Starlink service will be accessible through personal devices, as well as through all aircraft seatback screens, which also offer access to United Airlines’ own digital content platform.
United Airlines thus joins a small but growing number of airlines that have opted to sign up for Elon Musk’s novel satellite-based internet access system.
As of September 2024, Hawaiian Airlines has become the largest airline to have rolled out Starlink service. Qatar Airways and airBaltic are expected to follow suit, possibly in Q4 2024, as is ZipAir, a Japan Airlines subsidiary, which will be the first to offer the service in East Asia. Two small high end public charter airlines in the US, JSX and Aero, are already offering Starlink connectivity onboard.
