SpaceX’s Starlink to provide Wi-Fi on Hawaiian Airlines flights with free service for passengers

SpaceX will start providing wireless internet on Hawaiian Airlines flights from the Starlink satellite network as early as next year, a service the airline told CNBC it plans to offer to passengers for free. The deal marks the first for Elon Musk’s space company with a major airline. Starlink is SpaceX’s network of about 2,000 satellites in low Earth orbit, designed to deliver high-speed internet to consumers and businesses anywhere on the planet. Hawaiian’s plan for complimentary connectivity with Starlink could increase pressure on rivals to offer free Wi-Fi for travelers, something currently available on JetBlue Airways. For example, Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in 2018 that the airline wants to offer complimentary, high-speed Wi-Fi on its planes. It tested it on some flights in 2019. The installation of Starlink terminals, also known as antennas, is expected to start next year on Hawaiian planes. The airline has yet to begin testing Starlink on an aircraft, and there are “certification issues that need to be worked through before we’re ready to operate the product,” said Avi Mannis, Hawaiian’s chief marketing and communications officer. “But we’re confident that there’s a path forward for that.” The airline declined to disclose the financial details of its deal with SpaceX. Hawaiian doesn’t currently offer inflight Wi-Fi and has an extensive network of flights over the Pacific Ocean, serving the mainland US, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, among other destinations, from Hawaii. It plans to offer Starlink connectivity on its flights out of its home state to cities throughout the mainland US and to its international destinations.<br/>