SpaceX · Starlink · 27 Oct 2026

easyJet said Starlink's numbers didn't work. Nine months later it's putting it on its whole Airbus fleet

easyJet, one of Europe's biggest budget airlines, has never offered Wi-Fi in more than 30 years of flying. On Monday, 26 Oct 2026, it said Starlink will go on its A320 and A321 jets from the first half of 2027, finishing by early 2028. In January its CEO said "the economics aren't quite working for us." That reversal is the real story, because short, cheap flights were supposed to be the one corner of aviation where Starlink's numbers didn't add up.

From Alex RStarlink · News & analysis

What easyJet announced

In a press release on Monday, 26 Oct 2026, easyJet said Starlink "will be deployed from the first half of 2027 across the airline's modern A320, A320neo and A321neo fleet, with the roll out expected to be completed by early 2028." Passengers will be able to stream, game and browse, check their flight status in the easyJet app and, the airline says, potentially order from the onboard menu from their seat.

This is an announcement, not an installation. easyJet hasn't said any plane has Starlink yet, and the release doesn't say whether Wi-Fi will be free or paid. Reports disagree on that point, so treat any "free Wi-Fi" headline with caution until easyJet publishes pricing.

CEO Kenton Jarvis said "innovation is in easyJet's DNA." SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell said the deal means people can "work, stream, or stay in touch without interruption."

The U-turn

Nine months ago this looked unlikely. On Thursday, 29 Jan 2026, the day of easyJet's first-quarter results, Jarvis told journalists on a call that Starlink was a "really good" product, but, as reported by RTÉ: "At the moment ... where we are with our talks with Starlink, the economics aren't quite working for us." He added: "When the time is right, we'll pick the right service." He said easyJet was also talking to other providers.

That came on the heels of a very public row between Musk and Ryanair's Michael O'Leary, who had said Starlink's antennas would add drag and fuel cost. On 16 Jan, at 8:07am ET (5:07am PT; 13:07 Irish time), Musk replied to a post about O'Leary's drag claims:

O'Leary didn't back down. The following week he told reporters he thought fewer than 10% of Ryanair's passengers would pay for Wi-Fi, so the airline couldn't "shoulder cost of between $150m or $250m a year," according to RTÉ.

easyJet hasn't said what changed between January and October: price, hardware, terms or simply competitive pressure. What we can say is that the airline that said the economics weren't working has now signed, while Ryanair, which One Mile at a Time calls Europe's largest low-cost carrier, still says it doesn't want onboard Wi-Fi.

How big is it?

easyJet says it carried 100 million passengers in 2025 and has "over 350 aircraft." Not all of them are getting Starlink. Via Satellite, citing easyJet's most recent fleet update, counts 355 aircraft, including 180 A320s, 75 A320neos and 22 A321neos. That's 277 jets in the three types named in the release (as of 26 Oct 2026). The older A319s, more than 80 planes, are left out; One Mile at a Time reports they're due to retire by 2029.

Put that next to SpaceX's own number. Its third-quarter 10-Q says Starlink reached "over 3,800 aircraft equipped" as of 30 Sep 2026. easyJet's 277 jets would add roughly 7% to that installed base on their own. Via Satellite says SpaceX's investor update last week put contracted aircraft at roughly 12,000.

How it compares with the US airlines

• United had Starlink on more than 635 aircraft and nearly half its daily departures as of 15 Oct 2026, free for MileagePlus members. Our breakdown.
• Southwest says its whole fleet of more than 800 Boeing 737s will have it by fall 2027, free for Rapid Rewards members. Our breakdown.
• easyJet starts later, in the first half of 2027, but plans to cover its 277 A320-family jets by early 2028.

The pattern is the important bit. Many of the airlines that Aero-News Network listed as Starlink users in February, like Qatar Airways, Air France and Air New Zealand, fly long routes where Wi-Fi is easier to justify. Now two of the biggest low-cost, short-hop operators on either side of the Atlantic, Southwest and easyJet, have committed their fleets. That's exactly the segment O'Leary said couldn't make the numbers work.

The Apollo connection

One more detail. On 6 Aug 2026 easyJet agreed to be bought by Apollo-managed funds in a cash offer that values it at about £5.7 billion (about $7.6 billion at the European Central Bank's 26 Oct 2026 reference rates). The deal is still expected to complete by the end of the first quarter of 2027, subject to shareholder votes and regulatory approvals. Starlink installs are due to start in the first half of 2027, so around the time easyJet changes hands.

Apollo is also on the other side of SpaceX's $40 billion GPU finance lease. SpaceX's 8-K says it signed a binding commitment letter on Saturday, 24 Oct 2026, with an entity managed by Apollo Global Management. To be clear, there is no public evidence the two deals are linked, and easyJet's release doesn't mention Apollo. But it does mean easyJet's expected new owner signed a major financing deal with SpaceX two days before easyJet announced Starlink.

What to watch

Three things will tell us how real this is. First, pricing: free Wi-Fi for loyalty members, as at United and Southwest, would be a big shift for a budget airline. Second, whether the first easyJet jet flies with Starlink in the first half of 2027 as planned. Third, Ryanair. It still says no, and SpaceX now has more than 3,800 equipped aircraft (as of 30 Sep 2026) to point at.

Sources: easyJet press release (26 Oct 2026); SpaceX Q3 2026 10-Q; SpaceX 8-K (event date 24 Oct 2026); easyJet/Apollo Rule 2.7 announcement (6 Aug 2026); easyJet acquisition updates; RTÉ (29 Jan 2026); RTÉ (23 Jan 2026); Via Satellite (26 Oct 2026); One Mile at a Time (26 Oct 2026); Aero-News Network (3 Feb 2026); ECB euro reference rates (26 Oct 2026); Elon Musk on X (16 Jan 2026).

— Alex R