American Airlines picks SpaceX’s Starlink for in-flight Wi-Fi on more than 500 planes

American Airlines plans to outfit more than 500 of its narrow-body aircraft with Starlink, handing another win to Elon Musk’s SpaceX unit that has made inroads with major carriers for in-flight Wi-Fi.

American was evaluating Starlink and Amazon Leo as recently as March for the service.

The airline announced Tuesday it would install Starlink on about 500 of its narrow-body Airbus planes, like the A321neo, starting early next year. American spokesman said the carrier doesn’t have immediate plans to change providers on its Boeing fleet, which uses a mix of Viasat and Panasonic.

American in January rolled out free in-flight Wi-Fi for members of its frequent flyer program, following United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and others.

Delta in March said it would use Amazon Leo for in-flight Wi-Fi for hundreds of jets starting in 2028. United, Southwest Airlines and Alaska Airlines, which merged with Hawaiian Airlines in 2024, have selected Starlink.

Carriers are battling for higher-spending customers, including by upgrading once-slow, expensive and clunky in-flight internet to higher speeds. They have also been weighing other revenue streams, like personalized ads for travelers.

SpaceX, meanwhile, is preparing to go public in what’s likely to be a record IPO next month. Its connectivity unit, which includes Starlink, posted revenue of $11.39 billion last year, making up 61% of total sales, SpaceX said in a filing for its initial public offering earlier this month.