United Airlines is making incredible progress introducing free Starlink Wi-Fi for MileagePlus members throughout its fleet. The airline has just shared an update regarding the rollout of this service, and the expectation is that 1,000 planes will have the service by the end of the year. To say that United is leaving American and Delta in the dust when it comes to connectivity would be an understatement.

Historically, inflight connectivity is an area where United has lagged both American and Delta, but that’s quickly changing. In September 2024, United announced plans to introduce free Starlink Wi-Fi throughout its fleet. Starlink is free for all MileagePlus members, and they can log in on multiple devices.

Starlink is known for its high-speed, low-latency broadband internet, and the service is offered gate to gate. United highlights how Starlink Wi-Fi allows for live streaming, productivity similar to on the ground (with high upload and download speeds), gaming, e-commerce, support for multiple devices, and more.

As you’d expect, this isn’t an overnight process, and it does take some time to install the service. While many airlines have announced plans to introduce Starlink Wi-Fi, this is still the biggest deal we’ve seen to date, as no other airline of this size has announced plans to install Starlink on all aircraft.

In order for Starlink Wi-Fi to be installed, the airline needs Supplemental Type Certification (STC) from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for each plane type, covering a total of 16 regional and mainline aircraft models. The FAA certification process involves approval of the design, installation, testing, and certification of the system.

What’s also great about Starlink is that the installation process is pretty quick once aircraft are certified. The average Starlink installation time is around eight hours, which is 10 times faster than with non-Starlink equipment. United is taking full advantage of that speed and is installing the service at a lightning pace.

For quite some time, United has been sharing that it expects to offer Starlink Wi-Fi on 1,000+ planes — including all mainline aircraft and regional jets — by the end of 2027. However, that timeline has just been moved up considerably.

Currently, United has Starlink Wi-Fi on over 400 planes, though most of those are regional jets, since that’s where the airline started with the project. In recent months, mainline aircraft have increasingly received the service, and United now expects to have Starlink on 1,000 aircraft by the end of 2026. That beats the previous estimate of having it on 800 aircraft by year-end.

Starlink has already been installed on Airbus A320-family and Boeing 737 aircraft, and wide-body aircraft are now being added as well. United has just operated its first Boeing 777 flight with Starlink, with the goal of equipping 60 wide-body aircraft by the end of the year and completing installation on all wide-body aircraft by summer 2027.

When you visit united.com and look up flight status, you can see whether a flight is expected to have Starlink via the banner shown below.

Indicator that a United flight has Starlink

United Pulling Ahead of American and Delta on Wi-Fi

Up until Starlink installation started, United was fairly called the worst of the “big three” when it came to inflight connectivity. Even when United introduced Starlink, what mattered wasn’t what was promised, but what was delivered.

At this moment, United is still behind American and Delta when it comes to connectivity from a consistency standpoint — unless you fly primarily regional jets, where United is likely already the best option. But if United follows through on having Starlink on 1,000 aircraft by the end of 2026, the airline would be in a completely different league than American and Delta, with an advantage that will last years.

It’s striking how far behind American and Delta have fallen on this front:

  • American has Viasat Wi-Fi on most aircraft and Panasonic Wi-Fi on most wide-body aircraft. The airline also plans to install Starlink starting in early 2027 — a decision only recently made — though has only committed to doing so on around 500 jets, including narrow-body Airbus jets.
  • Delta has Viasat Wi-Fi on most aircraft but opted out of Starlink entirely, and will instead install Amazon LEO, which is expected to arrive no earlier than 2028. Delta also plans to install it on only 500 aircraft.

As the saying goes, “a luxury, once enjoyed, becomes a necessity.” Some airlines appear to be underestimating how quickly blazing-fast inflight Wi-Fi will become a basic customer expectation rather than a nice-to-have — and legacy Viasat connections will start to feel like the equivalent of dial-up internet by comparison.

Bottom Line

United is rolling out free Starlink Wi-Fi throughout its fleet, rapidly reversing its historical disadvantage relative to American and Delta on inflight connectivity. The airline currently has Starlink on 400+ planes, with coverage expanding to 1,000+ aircraft by the end of 2026 and full fleet installation completed before the end of 2027. For cost-conscious travelers who rely on inflight Wi-Fi — whether for work or streaming — United’s free, high-speed Starlink service is quickly becoming one of the most compelling reasons to choose the airline over its competitors.