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United Airlines is making steady progress in its mission to equip its entire 1,000-plus fleet with Starlink’s satellite Wi-Fi solution, revealing that it has already completed installations on over 300 aircraft. With the majority of its regional fleet now offering Starlink in-flight connectivity, the carrier expects to have over 800 aircraft completed by the end of 2026.
According to the carrier, more than seven million of its passengers have already used Starlink across 129,000 flights. Its adoption of SpaceX’s well-received product pushes United to the top of the in-flight connectivity game, with Starlink consistently outperforming rival Wi-Fi services in reliability and speed.
United Starlink Rollout Now Over 300 Planes
Back in 2024, United revealed it was partnering with Starlink to furnish its entire fleet with the company’s product. This groundbreaking partnership will see over 1,000 United planes equipped with Starlink, delivering high-speed, reliable onboard Wi-Fi across its entire network. Under its initial timeline, the airline focused on upgrading its regional fleet first, before turning its eye to its mainline fleet.
In an update, United has revealed that over 300 of its aircraft are now Starlink-capable, and this number will almost triple in the space of just 12 months. By the end of 2026, the carrier expects to have around 800 aircraft equipped, putting it on track to meet its fleet-wide installation goal sometime in 2027. Its first mainline aircraft have already completed installations late last year, and this mainline focus will accelerate rapidly over the next 12–18 months. As per the airline,
“We expect to also have it onboard more than half our full fleet (bringing the total to 800+ aircraft!) by the end of this year. More than 7 million of you — on 129,000 flights — have already been able to stream, scroll, game and connect from gate to gate with Starlink.”
Biggest Onboard Wi-Fi Rollout In History
As the world’s largest airline in terms of fleet size, United’s partnership with Starlink represents the largest in-flight connectivity rollout in aviation history. According to ch-aviation, United’s fleet now consists of over 1,060 aircraft, over half of which are Boeing 737 narrowbodies.
The Starlink installation process is relatively quick, with each aircraft having around an eight-hour turnaround time. However, there are other hurdles, such as receiving the necessary Supplemental Type Certifications (STC) from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for each of its plane types. The first to be approved was its Embraer E175 fleet back in May, while the airline’s first mainline Starlink-enabled flight onboard a 737 took place in October.
Over the years, United has generally been considered as lacking on the in-flight connectivity front, offering no less than four different providers across its fleet. That has completely flipped in the space of several months, with United now leading its rivals in the onboard Wi-Fi department. Although both American Airlines and Delta Air Lines offer free Wi-Fi to their customers, neither airline has partnered with Starlink at this stage.
United Airlines Is Operating Its 1st Mainline Flight With Starlink WiFi Tomorrow
The service will connect two of the carrier’s main hubs.
How Good Is Starlink?
Onboard Wi-Fi solutions have generally been inconsistent in quality, with most in-flight connectivity products offering questionable latency and download speeds. However, most passengers understand the technical difficulties of delivering internet at 35,000 feet, so the expectation bar was not set particularly high.
But with Starlink, passengers now have access to Wi-Fi that is indistinguishable from a home internet connection. The product uses low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites to deliver connectivity, a process that is far more efficient than conventional products that rely on Geostationary (GEO) satellites. With speeds often exceeding 200 Mbps, this is orders of magnitude faster than previous-generation products, and coverage is also available gate-to-gate, not just while in the air.
Although high internet speeds are perfect for streaming video or playing online games, United says that voice and video calls via Starlink onboard aircraft are prohibited by federal law. This is primarily due to concerns about cabin noise and disruption among passengers, with airlines preferring to enforce quieter cabins.
