American Airlines shares jumped on Tuesday after the carrier announced a sweeping modernization of its narrow-body in-flight experience, with plans to install Starlink satellite internet terminals across 500 of its narrow-body jets in Q1 2027.
The modernization effort signals the end of slow, unreliable internet for a large portion of American’s domestic and short-haul fleet. Passengers will soon be able to stream, work, monitor markets via the Bloomberg Terminal, or check X in real time at speeds far beyond current in-flight internet speeds.
Elon Musk welcomed American Airlines to the Starlink family earlier on Tuesday.
Starlink coming to American Airlines! 💫 https://t.co/XC3EasJKdy
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 26, 2026
Starlink is becoming a leading airline internet provider, with deals already in place at United, Southwest, and Alaska Air:
“Starlink is widely regarded as the world’s most advanced satellite constellation using a low Earth orbit to deliver broadband internet capable of supporting inflight streaming, online gaming, collaborative meeting tools and more,” American wrote in a press release, adding, “With thousands of satellites in low Earth orbit, Starlink can deliver multigigabit connectivity to aircraft using its Aero Terminal, which can support up to 1 Gbps per antenna.”
Shares of AAL jumped nearly 6% in late-afternoon trading. Year to date, shares are marginally lower by around 4%.
Some airline passengers are already prioritizing bookings with carriers that offer Starlink, as fast, reliable in-flight internet becomes a deciding factor for streaming, gaming, or simply remote work at 36,000 feet.
The announcement comes just weeks before SpaceX is set to IPO. Read the latest here.Â
Tyler Durden
Tue, 05/26/2026 – 15:00
