United announces accelerated timeline for Starlink's industry-leading connectivity in the sky

United Airlines announced an accelerated timeline to bring Starlink – the world's fastest, most reliable connectivity in the sky – to United travelers around the world. 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.

Richard Nunn, CEO of United MileagePlus commented: "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. 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. And 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.

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
• Just about anything you can pay for with cash at United, you can buy with miles (seats, wifi, snacks, etc.)
• And 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.