By PYMNTS | October 21, 2026
United Airlines’ technology offerings are drawing customers to the airline and keeping them coming back, CEO Scott Kirby said Wednesday (Oct. 21) during an earnings call.
Kirby highlighted Starlink Wi-Fi. United said in a Tuesday (Oct. 20) press release that the airline has installed Starlink Wi-Fi on more than 640 aircraft, adds it to three more aircraft per day and expects to make it available fleetwide by the end of 2027.
During the call, Kirby said that United offers more Starlink-equipped flights than the rest of the U.S. airline industry combined and that the company is seeing evidence that Starlink is a factor when customers choose an airline. He added that United launched a Starlink tracker that lets people see if their flight has Starlink.
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“It is hard to get brand-loyal customers to switch airlines, and while it is mostly anecdotal, we are seeing two important things happen,” Kirby said. “One, customers who are brand loyal to other airlines and have flown them for years switch to a United flight solely because of Starlink. Once they try us, they stick with us because they also experience great service and all the nose-to-tail things we’ve invested in for years, like new aircraft, larger seatback screens in every class of service, oversized bins, technology like ConnectionSaver and a mobile app that’s dramatically better than anything they’ve experienced before.”
ConnectionSaver is United’s artificial intelligence (AI)-powered tool that identifies departing flights that can be held for connecting customers without delaying the on-time arrival of those who have already boarded. United said in a June 2025 press release that since its launch in 2019, ConnectionSaver had saved more than 3.3 million customer connections.
During the third quarter, United added to its mobile app a feature that allows customers who are rebooked to a later flight after a travel disruption to stand by for as many as three earlier flights and receive a text notification when a seat becomes available.
On Oct. 16, United made its mobile app available in Japanese with yen currency support and local point-of-sale capabilities that make it easier for customers in Japan to book and manage their travel.
“I don’t think people appreciate how big the technology advantage is at United,” Kirby said during the call. “If you fly United, you can see it in the app, but the app is the tip of the iceberg.”
Kirby said during the call that United knows that high-speed, low-earth orbit (LEO) WiFi like Starlink will eventually become an industry standard. But during 2027 and 2028, when United will remain the only global airline offering Starlink at scale, United expects to continue drawing new customers and giving them reasons to return.
“While others are just ramping up on their LEO Wi-Fi installations, we’ll be onto our next wave of product and technology to sustain our lead and further deepen the competitive moats around our business,” Kirby said.