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United Airlines Embraer E175
United Airlines will begin its rollout of Starlink Wi-Fi on regional aircraft, expecting tests to begin in February.
Describing an “accelerated timeline” for the offering it first announced in September 2024, United plans to outfit all two-cabin aircraft in its regional fleet by the end of 2025. Roughly 75% of its regional fleet, about 200 aircraft, are two-cabin.
United now anticipates a commercial debut for the service this spring, on an Embraer E175. It also plans to have its first Starlink-enabled mainline aircraft in the air before the year’s end. “Ultimately,” the carrier will add the Starlink service to its entire fleet, United said.
Details of the rollout are scarce; United declined to comment on further specifics or elaborate on plans for the mainline installations. Previously it had announced testing would begin in early 2025 with initial passenger flights expected later in the year, projecting full rollout to occur “over the next several years.”
Access to the service will be free for MileagePlus members.
United will be “adding Starlink to as many planes as we can—as quickly as we can,” MileagePlus CEO Richard Nunn stated in the Jan. 5 update. He noted that the service would also “unlock tons of new partnerships and benefits for our members that otherwise wouldn’t be possible.”
Engineered and operated by SpaceX, Starlink connectivity is delivered through a network of satellites in low orbit.
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