Starlink expands travel Wi‑Fi

Starlink is pushing its satellite internet deeper into travel, with service now marketed for flights, ships and trains as the company says its network spans more than 150 countries and territories. (starlink.com) Starlink’s latest progress page says it added more than 4.6 million active customers in 2025 and expanded into 35 additional markets that year alone. Its stories page says more than 9 million people, businesses and organizations use the service worldwide, while the company’s new post on X put the figure above 11 million subscribers. (starlink.com 1) (starlink.com 2) (x.com) The travel push is already visible in aviation. Starlink’s aviation page says the service has been used on tens of thousands of flights, and airlines including United, Lufthansa Group, Southwest and Virgin Atlantic have announced new or expanded rollouts since January. (starlink.com) (united.com) (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com) (southwestairlinesinvestorrelations.com) (corporate.virginatlantic.com) That changes the old in-flight internet model, which relied heavily on a small number of higher-orbit satellites and often delivered patchy service over oceans or remote areas. Starlink uses a much larger network of low-Earth-orbit satellites, which cuts delay and gives aircraft, ships and trains more chances to stay linked as they move. (spacex.com) (starlink.com) The same pitch now extends beyond planes. Starlink markets maritime service for merchant vessels, offshore sites and cruise lines, and says Brightline became the first passenger rail operator to adopt Starlink internet for riders in South Florida. (starlink.com 1) (starlink.com 2) Cruise operators have become an early proving ground. Starlink’s maritime page features Royal Caribbean Group saying the network supports crew communications and new guest services across its nine cruise brands. (starlink.com) Airlines are also using the service as a customer perk instead of a paid add-on. Lufthansa Group said in January that it plans to equip about 850 aircraft starting in the second half of 2026, while Southwest said in February that its first Starlink-equipped planes will enter service this summer and that more than 300 aircraft should be fitted by the end of 2026. (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com) (southwestairlinesinvestorrelations.com) United moved earlier. The airline said on January 5, 2025 that it would begin Starlink testing the next month, and by October 2025 it said more than half of its regional fleet already had the system installed. (united.com 1) (united.com 2) The broader bet is that “offline” becomes harder to find during long-haul trips. Starlink’s mobility and service-plan pages now sell in-motion connectivity for vehicles and mobile users in the same 150-plus-country footprint as its fixed service, turning satellite broadband into a transport utility as much as a home internet product. (starlink.com) (starlink.com) The open question is how fast hardware installation, airline certification and local approvals can keep up with demand. But the direction is clear: Starlink is no longer selling only a dish for rural homes; it is trying to make the dead zone between departure and arrival much smaller. (starlink.com) (starlink.com)