AA, today:

American Airlines today announced a sweeping modernization of its narrowbody inflight customer experience with the installation of Starlink, the fastest Wi-Fi in the sky, on more than 500 narrowbody aircraft beginning in Q1 2027.

…“As a premium global airline, we are continuously seeking out world-class partners like Starlink to deliver what our customers need and want,” said American Airlines Chief Customer Officer Heather Garboden. “The addition of Starlink solidifies American as a leading airline in keeping passengers connected in flight.”

We’ve talked before about American’s reputation for playing catch up with the other two big airlines. In this case, they’re behind United, who plan to be at 800 aircraft by the end of 2026, but they’re going to end up ahead of Delta, who won’t switch to fast satellite Wi-Fi (delivered by Amazon) until 2028, when they’re planning to deploy it on 500 aircraft.

In any case, this is exciting for AA travelers, and a sign that they’re serious about premium travel. This announcement came fast after transitioning to free Wi-Fi. I could believe that before last year’s customer experience mandate, they’d just renew with Viasat/Intelsat.