United Airlines to soon offer free Starlink WiFi on flights

AUSTIN (KXAN) — United Airlines passengers will soon have access to in-flight Starlink WiFi, as the airline announced its agreement with SpaceX Friday.

The Starlink service will be free for passengers, with gate-to-gate internet service and in-flight entertainment options, per the release. United officials said they plan to expand the Starlink service to its more than 1,000 planes over the course of multiple years.

Testing operations are slated to begin in early 2025, and the first passenger flights with the technology are expected to roll out later in the year, per the release.

“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,” United CEO Scott Kirby said in the release. “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.”

Both United’s mainline and regional aircraft fleet will feature the Starlink services, which will include:

• Livestreaming live TV, shows and movies
• Ability to download and upload documents as well as edit shared files
• Playing live games and game streaming services
• Shop online and participate in e-commerce
• Connect multiple devices
• Download and use United apps for real-time information on a customer’s future connections, as well as connect with customer support

Here in Austin, data from the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport found nearly 2.5 million passengers traveling out of AUS flew on United flights in 2023. In total, more than 22 million passengers flew out of the Austin airport last year.

More details on the agreement are available online .

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