Amazon and Delta to start rolling out faster, cheaper in-flight Wi-Fi to fliers by 2028
FOX Business Publisher Liz Claman talks to CEO Ed Bastian and Andy Jassy about a new partnership between Delta Airlines and Amazon that will bring faster and cheaper in-flight Wi-Fi to customers on ‘The Claman Countdown.’
Amazon and Delta Air Lines are working together to significantly improve the in-flight Wi-Fi experience and finally give passengers the ability to make video calls from 30,000 feet away.
Company executives announced Tuesday that Amazon Leo, the company’s high-speed satellite Internet service, will be offered on Delta flights starting in 2028.
“It will be many times faster than anything we have today. And it will be more expensive,” Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said in an exclusive joint interview that aired Tuesday on “The Claman Countdown.”
“And that’s just Wi-Fi. If you think about what Amazon as a business and Delta as a business in terms of customer experience and what we can do when we travel together, it’s going to blow people away.”
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Passengers will be able to use Amazon Leo Wi-Fi in 2028. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said the new Wi-Fi system would be a game-changer and Bastian said prices “will be very low.”
“It will enable us to provide a better experience to customers at 2, 3, 4 times the speed of what they are used to on Delta today,” explained Bastian.
“We will invest in whatever it takes to build a low-orbit satellite constellation that works incredibly well at low cost,” Jassy said.
Amazon Leo uses low-orbit satellites to provide high-speed Internet service to rural and remote areas, a technology Bastian says is key to maintaining Delta’s competitive edge.
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“We’ve been a leader in free, high-speed Wi-Fi in our industry, not just in the US, by the way, around the world,” Bastian told FOX Business.
“We already have 1,200 planes, almost our entire fleet, already equipped with free, high-speed Wi-Fi, more than probably many other combined airlines have today. But we need to stay ahead of the curve. And technology moves fast.”
Delta Air Lines is partnering with Amazon’s high-speed satellite Wi-Fi system, Amazon Leo, to improve the passenger experience. (Kevin Carter / Getty Images / Getty Images)
Bastian said his “great confidence” in Delta’s relationship with Amazon was a key factor in how the relationship took off.
“We are already an important partner, transporting Amazon’s employees around the world,” explained Delta’s CEO.
Delta already uses Amazon technology, including Fuse and Amazon WorkSpaces (AWS).
“Andy and I have known each other for a long time and our teams know each other well. So, it led to a conversation a few months ago… thinking about what we could do together.”
Major airlines, including Alaska and United, are using Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite, which works in the same way as Amazon Leo’s, to provide Internet access to rural areas.
Bastian said Delta’s recently improved Wi-Fi system in partnership with Amazon will be a strong competitor to Musk’s plan.
“I think these numbers will be very competitive with Starlink and the costs will be much lower than what we pay today,” he told FOX Business anchor Liz Claman.
Bastian said in-flight video calling is on the cards but there will be limitations when implemented.
Interior view of a B737 MAX aircraft seen at Dallas-Forth Worth International Airport in Dallas, Texas. (COOPER NEILL/AFP via Getty Images/Getty Images)
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“[Passengers] you will be able to do this. We will not allow real negotiations to happen now. We’re not going to open that up,” he said. “Well, people will be able to participate in online video conferences, but they won’t have the audio capability to speak.”
“They’ll be able to have a conversation and participate. There are a lot of business tools that Andy said we’re going to work with Amazon and create in this fast-moving world of AI and business.”
Amazon Leo will begin being installed on Delta flights in 2028 and the two companies are already exploring ways to bring more offerings to passengers.
“We have many plans to leverage the capabilities offered by both of our respective companies and make Delta customers very happy,” said Jassy.
