Image: United Airlines
United Airlines says Starlink Wi-Fi is now active on more than 635 of its aircraft, which covers nearly half of its daily departures. That’s according to United’s release and X post on Thursday.
The airline also launched a tracker site that lets travelers check whether an upcoming flight has Starlink, and it extended its “Switch to Better Wi-Fi” status match offer to October 22. United says it already has more Starlink-equipped planes than any other airline in the world, and that more than 250,000 customers fly on one every day across more than 2,500 flights.
Travelers can enter flight numbers within three days of departure, and the results update in real time when the airline swaps aircraft at the last minute. The site also breaks out how many regional, narrowbody and widebody planes have Starlink, along with the share of Starlink flights at United’s hubs in Chicago, Newark, Washington, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston and Denver. United says it has flown more than 37.7 million passengers on more than 538,000 Starlink flights so far.
It has been a quick climb. United signed its Starlink deal in September 2024 to equip more than 1,000 aircraft, and it flew its first mainline jet last October, when around 160 regional aircraft had the service. Wi-Fi is still free for MileagePlus members.
The pace has kept up lately. When we covered the NFL seatback launch on September 18, United counted more than 560 Starlink aircraft and 31 million passengers flown, so the fleet has grown by roughly 75 planes in about four weeks. United says it is installing about 20 aircraft per week and plans to finish by the end of 2027.
The status match is the other piece of the push. United’s October 1 status match offer lets eligible Delta SkyMiles and American AAdvantage members earn United Premier status through January 2028 by meeting spending requirements and flying United within 90 days. United says applications are 275% higher than before the campaign, with New York City, Los Angeles and San Francisco leading the way.
Have you flown United on Starlink yet, and would a tracker change how you pick your next flight?
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