SpaceX Starlink has signed a contract for 2,500 aircraft | Wilnesh News

PARIS — SpaceX’s backlog of Starlink in-flight Wi-Fi orders has nearly doubled compared to last week United Airlines A company director said on Tuesday the deal.

Nick Galano, director of SpaceX’s Starlink aviation business, said: “We are very pleased that we have now signed contracts for approximately 2,500 aircraft, turning a de facto startup into what we believe is now is a growing experience that will resonate with all passengers and airlines around the world.

Elon Musk’s aerospace company’s satellite networking unit is entering the in-flight connectivity (IFC) market. Last week, United said it would equip more than 1,000 of its planes with Starlink and would not charge customers for Wi-Fi.

United’s mega-deal is Starlink’s largest IFC agreement to date. It will also eliminate four of United’s existing WiFi providers – Via SatellitePanasonic, Thales and Gogo –Starlink will be installed on the airline’s aircraft in the next few years.

SpaceX previously announced flight deals and has started working with Hawaiian AirlinesQatar Airways, Japan’s Zipair, Latvia’s AirBaltic and semi-private charter airline JSX.

Since its debut in 2020, SpaceX has steadily expanded its Starlink network and product offerings.

There are currently about 6,400 Starlink satellites in orbit, connecting more than 3 million customers in 100 countries, according to the company.

Garano touted the “absolute factor in the capacity that we can deliver with Starlink,” saying that the current satellite constellation is “probably over 100 times the capacity that all legacy systems can deliver,” as “today’s capacity is over 300 terabits per second. ”.

SpaceX also continues to increase its launch capabilities, launching a rocket carrying new Starlink satellites every three days on average this year, according to the company.

Galano also emphasized that SpaceX is working to reduce the time required to install new antennas on aircraft. The process, known as retrofitting, is a pain point for airlines, requiring them to take planes out of service for sometimes days to upgrade or replace satellite communications systems.

“We’re trying to simplify these installations — we use the word innovative — within a day, and we’ve proven that on the Hawaiian Airlines and JSX fleets,” Galano said.

In contrast, Delta Air Lines Glenn Latta, the airline’s managing director of inflight entertainment and connectivity, said its satellite IFC retrofit “takes about three days on average.” But Latta said Delta’s process, which would require retrofitting 1,200 aircraft, is also more intensive than installing Starlink on Hawaiian Airlines’ fleet, which will have 66 aircraft in mid-2024, according to one report. Securities filing.

“One of our retrofits is to remove the existing system … and then you can install it,” Latta told CNBC after the panel. “(Hawaii) has never had a satellite communications system, so that’s something to consider. One of the differences.”

Delta Air Lines, which relies on Viasat for in-flight service, said it will make WiFi free to members in early 2023 — a decision that Latta said has proven to be well worth it for the airline. Delta Air Lines and United Airlines are both courting high-end customers.

“We have added 3 million SkyMiles members by providing free Internet access as part of our loyalty program,” Latta said.

—CNBC’s Leslie Josephs contributed to this article.