SEATTLE — Alaska Airlines has joined a small but growing list of air carriers that are adding Starlink internet service to their planes.

On Wednesday, the Seattle-based airline said it will start offering free high-speed internet service in 2026 and outfit its entire fleet with the technology by 2027.

What You Need To Know

  • Alaska Airlines has joined a small but growing list of air carriers that are adding Starlink internet service to their planes

  • On Wednesday, the Seattle-based airline said it will start offering free high-speed Internet service in 2026 and outfit its entire fleet with the technology by 2027

  • Alaska says its Starlink-equipped planes will have Wi-Fi speeds of up to 500 megabits per second — seven times faster than the Wi-Fi systems available on most passenger aircraft

  • Hawaiian Airlines, United Airlines, Air France, Air New Zealand and Qatar Airways also use Starlink on their planes

“With Starlink already live on Hawaiian Airlines and installations starting this winter across Alaska’s fleet, we’re proud that we’ll offer the fastest, most reliable inflight internet in the skies — with gate-to-gate connectivity on nearly every aircraft across both airlines,” Alaska Air Group CEO and President Ben Minicucci said in a statement.

Last year, before Alaska purchased it, Hawaiian Airlines became the first major air carrier to use Starlink, offering it as a free service to all travelers. United Airlines has also started adding Elon Musk’s satellite-based internet service to provide Wi-Fi on its flights. Free to United MileagePlus members, the service will be available on more than 300 of its 1,000 aircraft by the end of 2025, and eventually on all United planes.

Internet service on airplanes is inconsistent across carriers, with some offering it at a premium, others providing it for free, and still others not offering it at all. When it is available, service is often slow and unreliable.

The fifth largest air carrier in the U.S., Alaska says its Starlink-equipped planes will have Wi-Fi speeds of up to 500 megabits per second — seven times faster than the Wi-Fi systems available on most passenger aircraft.

Since rolling out its satellite-based internet service in 2019, Starlink has signed up more than 6 million customers globally. A subsidiary of Musk’s SpaceX, it uses over 8,000 small satellites in low Earth orbit to provide broadband to people on the ground and, increasingly, in the air.

Air France, Air New Zealand and Qatar Airways also use Starlink on their aircraft.

The new Starlink Wi-Fi service on Alaska will allow live streaming of TV shows and movies without buffering. It will also enable users to play games live on gaming streaming services, to download and upload documents in real time, and to shop online — just as they do on the ground.

Alaska Airlines says Starlink will bring “home-quality internet to the skies globally, even on full flights and in remote areas.” The service will help international travelers flying to Asia and Europe maintain internet coverage during their flights.