AMERICAN Airlines said on Tuesday it is making a sweeping modernization of its inflight customer experience as it will equip over 500 of its narrow-body aircraft with Starlink in-flight Wi-Fi for domestic and short-haul international routes, starting in the first quarter of 2027.
The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
With premium travel demand soaring since the Covid pandemic, airlines around the world have rushed to equip their fleet with faster and more reliable in-flight internet to win customers.
American currently offers free Wi-Fi for all customers enrolled in its loyalty program on nearly all of its flights in partnership with AT&T.
The carrier had a mainline fleet of 1,022 aircraft, including 885 narrow-body jets, as of end-March.
As part of American’s commitment to an elevated passenger experience, Starlink will enable seamless streaming, browsing and real-time communication capabilities across the airline’s domestic and short-haul international routes.
Starlink uses a low Earth orbit to deliver broadband internet capable of supporting inflight streaming, online gaming, collaborative meeting tools, and more. With thousands of satellites in low Earth orbit, Starlink can deliver multigigabit connectivity to aircraft using its Aero Terminal, which can support up to 1 Gigabits per second per antenna.
Starlink itself has become a crucial revenue driver for its initial public offering-bound parent SpaceX, with the satellite broadband unit being the only profitable business in 2025 at the Elon Musk-owned company.
The world’s largest satellite operator has inked deals with several United States airlines over the last few years, including Southwest, United and Alaska Airlines.
It also counts long-haul carriers such as Singapore Airlines and Dubai’s Emirates as customers.
