United Airlines announced an accelerated timeline to bring Starlink—the world’s fastest, most reliable connectivity in the sky—to United travelers worldwide.

The airline now 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 now 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 this year.

Ultimately, United will add Starlink to its entire fleet.

Access will be free for all MileagePlus customers and includes game-changing inflight entertainment experiences like streaming services, shopping, gaming, and more. Membership to MileagePlus is also free, and people can sign up now at united.com/starlink.

“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. “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.”

Last September, United signed the industry’s largest agreement of its kind with SpaceX to bring Starlink to its entire fleet. Starting in 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. 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 simultaneously.

How will United Airlines & Starlink connectivity work?

Each United aircraft will be equipped with specialized Starlink antennas mounted on the fuselage. These electronically steered phased-array antennas track and maintain a continuous connection with the Starlink satellites, ensuring uninterrupted internet access even at cruising altitudes and speeds. The installation process involves integrating these antennas with the aircraft’s existing systems, a procedure that United plans to commence testing in early 2025, with passenger flights expected to feature the service later that year.

Gate-to-Gate Connectivity

Unlike some existing in-flight Wi-Fi services that are only available at cruising altitudes, Starlink’s system offers gate-to-gate connectivity. This means passengers can access the internet from the moment they board until they disembark, providing a seamless online experience throughout the entire journey.

MileagePlus was recently rated the world’s best airline loyalty program and includes the following features:

• Free to join, for all customers
• Free to earn miles
• Miles never expire
• No blackout dates for award seats. If there’s a seat open, you can buy it with miles
• You can pay for just about anything with cash at United, and you can buy it with miles (seats, wifi, snacks, etc.).
• United became the first major U.S. airline to allow members of its loyalty program to pool their miles with family and friends into a joint account.

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. During the summer of 2024, more than three million MileagePlus customers flew on award tickets.

About United

At United, Good Leads the Way. With U.S. hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, New York/Newark, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., United operates the most comprehensive global route network among North American carriers and is now the largest airline in the world as measured by available seat miles.

About Starlink

Starlink delivers high-speed, low-latency internet to users all over the world. As 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. Starlink is engineered and operated by SpaceX. As the world’s leading provider of launch services, SpaceX is leveraging its deep experience with spacecraft and on-orbit operations to deploy the world’s most advanced broadband internet system.