Delta is bringing free Wi-Fi to flights using Amazon's satellites

[Shawn Knight]

In brief: Delta Air Lines has partnered with Amazon to equip its planes with high-speed, low-latency wireless Internet service powered by Amazon's Leo satellites. The multi-year agreement will initially fit 500 aircraft with gate-to-gate Wi-Fi, and will be free for all Delta SkyMiles members.

Think of Leo as Amazon's version of SpaceX Starlink. The division was established in 2019 and is the third largest satellite system in orbit according to the company. Even still, Leo does feel a bit behind the competition in terms of the sheer size of its constellation.

Amazon notes that Leo is powered by a constellation of "thousands of satellites" in low Earth orbit but later in the press release, the company says Leo currently has "more than 200 satellites in orbit" with 20+ full-scale missions planned over the coming year.

Amazon said each Delta plane will be equipped with a single phased array antenna based on Leo Ultra, supporting download speeds of up to 1Gbps and uploads in the neighborhood of 400Mbps. Passengers shouldn't notice much of a difference compared to terrestrial networks, meaning they'll be able to stream movies and TV shows from their favorite services, engage with social media, and even play online games at 35,000 feet.

With the partnership, Delta becomes the latest major airline to join forces with a satellite Internet provider. Earlier this year, American Airlines teamed up with AT&T to bring free Wi-Fi to all of its flights and in 2025, United reached an agreement with SpaceX for in-flight Starlink access.

Financial terms of the Delta deal were not shared, nor do we know how long it will take to outfit the 500 planes. The rollout won't start until sometime in 2028, however. Delta did mention it has partnerships with other providers already in place including T-Mobile, Viasat, and Hughes to ensure it "equips the right aircraft with the right technology."

SkyMiles is Delta's loyalty program, and is free to join. In addition to complimentary Wi-Fi, members can earn miles that can be redeemed for discounts on future flights, seat upgrades, checked bags, or with partners like Hertz and Starbucks.

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Delta is bringing free Wi-Fi to flights using Amazon's satellites

 

[BobDolesGhost]

Amazon's Leo satellites

You misspelled "Jeff Link" heh (credit to Eager Space on youtube)

Its hard to imagine Delta entering into this partnership agreement. Jeff Link's credibility of forming a usable sat com network is abysmal. A lot of that isn't Amazon's fault as their "anyone but SpaceX" choice of launchers have abysmal launch rates for years now - but Amazon's production of satellites hasn't been stellar either. I know they have a pile waiting to launch now, but they've had forever to pile those up as they haven't been able to launch them

 

[Endymio]

A lot of that isn't Amazon's fault as their "anyone but SpaceX" choice of launchers have abysmal launch rates for years now - but Amazon's production of satellites hasn't been stellar either

I suppose their first launch partner -- Blue Origin -- is technically not Amazon also, but it's still a Bezos baby.

BTW and IIRC, Amazon has now not only signed launch contracts with Arianespace, but SpaceX as well.

 

[p51d007]

Make sure you use a VPN or something...who knows what's lurking around the cabin at 35,000 feet.

 

[Superconductor]

All that ... and flame-out engines too!