United Airlines has announced an accelerated timeline for the rollout of Starlink – the world’s fastest, most reliable connectivity in the sky.
The airline expects to begin testing Starlink next month with the first commercial flight anticipated to take off this spring, on a United Embraer E-175 aircraft.
UNITED AIRLINES STARLINK ROLLOUT
In September 2024, United Airlines signed the industry’s largest agreement of its kind with SpaceX to bring Starlink to its entire fleet.
So, within a few months, the airline’s customers will enjoy the same high-speed, low-latency internet service in the air that they enjoy on the ground.
United plans to outfit its entire two-cabin regional fleet by the end of this year and have its first mainline Starlink-enabled plane in the air before the end of 2025.
Ultimately, United Airlines will also offer Starlink on its entire fleet.
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MILEAGEPLUS MEMBERS
Access will be free for all MileagePlus customers and includes game-changing inflight entertainment experiences like streaming services, shopping, gaming and more.
On an average day, about 31,000 United seats are filled by MileagePlus customers using their miles – that’s the same as filling about 100 Boeing 777 aircraft.
That said, during the summer of 2024, more than three million MileagePlus customers flew on award tickets.
“We have a lot planned for our MileagePlus members this year and adding Starlink to as many planes as we can – as quickly as we can – is at the center of it all,” said Richard Nunn, CEO of United MileagePlus.
This gate-to-gate connectivity will enable experiences in the sky at scale that no other major U.S. airline provides, on seatback screens and personal devices.
“It’s not only going to revolutionize the experience of flying United, but it’s also going to unlock tons of new partnerships and benefits for our members that otherwise wouldn’t be possible.” Nunn said.
You can sign up for MileagePlus here: united.com/starlink.
Membership to MileagePlus is also free.
STARLINK
Starlink is engineered and operated by SpaceX.
As the world’s leading provider of launch services, SpaceX is leveraging its experience with spacecraft and on-orbit operations to deploy the world’s most advanced broadband internet system.
Starlink delivers significantly high-speed, low-latency internet to users all over the world.
Being the world’s first and largest satellite constellation using a low Earth orbit, Starlink delivers broadband internet capable of supporting streaming, online gaming, video calls and more.
