American will put Starlink on every mainline jet and plans about one new or renovated lounge a month

American Airlines will install Starlink Wi-Fi on every one of its mainline jets. That is more than 1,030 aircraft, from Airbus narrowbodies to Boeing 787s. Work begins in early 2027, the airline said in its Oct. 8 announcement.

The news lands a few weeks after Heather Garboden, American's chief customer officer, laid out a faster lounge plan. Speaking at FTE Global in Dallas in September, she said American expects to open, renovate or expand about one lounge a month, on average, over the next two to three years. She also said the airline is taking a fresh look at its Flagship lounges, Future Travel Experience reported.

Starlink, now on the whole mainline fleet

In May, American said it would put Starlink on more than 500 Airbus narrowbodies. Reports last week said Boeing jets would follow. One Mile at a Time called a fleetwide rollout likely, citing a post by the aviation leaker JonNYC. American has now confirmed it.

American will use Starlink's Performance Aero Terminal. The airline says it can reach up to 1 Gbps per terminal. That speed is shared by everyone on board, so what each passenger sees will be lower. American says more than 165 million customers a year fly its mainline jets, across four fleet families. It also has more than 300 new mainline aircraft on order.

"Our customers have told us that dependable connectivity can make a meaningful difference in how they spend their time in the air," Garboden said in the release. She added that Starlink "provides the foundation for future innovations that will further enhance the customer experience."

Lauren Dreyer, vice president of Starlink business operations at SpaceX, said customers "will have fast, reliable internet from gate to gate."

The plan covers mainline jets only. View from the Wing notes that American Eagle regional jets are not included. It also notes that American already offers free Wi-Fi to AAdvantage members on many flights. The new release does not say whether Starlink will be free, or for whom.

American is not alone. The Lufthansa Group is also moving its fleet to free Starlink; see our story on Lufthansa's plan for all 850 of its planes.

A lounge a month

Garboden's lounge comments were the bigger surprise. American has been opening and refreshing clubs one by one. She said the pace will now pick up, to roughly one project a month. Lounges are "something that customers value," she said. She called them an important part of the airline's program and its credit card offer.

She did not name airports. Two projects are already public. American is building a new 10,000-square-foot Admirals Club in Concourse L at Chicago O'Hare. And on Oct. 6 it announced its largest Admirals Club yet, at more than 40,000 square feet, in Charlotte. Neither has an opening date.

The Flagship review matters more to long-haul travelers. American opened its first Flagship lounges about a decade ago. Garboden said the airline wants to rethink what premium customers expect today. She gave no timeline, and she did not say what might change.

Where American's lounges stand today

Lounge Frog lists six Flagship lounges. All are open to oneworld Emerald members and premium-cabin passengers, and all have craft cocktail bars and showers. Here is how they rate:

• Miami: 4.9, with six showers.
• Los Angeles: 4.8, with eight showers.
• Dallas/Fort Worth: 4.7, with eight showers.
• Philadelphia: 4.7, with six showers.
• New York JFK: 4.6, with ten showers.
• Chicago O'Hare: 4.6, with eight showers.

These scores are strong. That suggests the rethink is less about fixing weak lounges and more about where the bar sits now. United and Delta have both raised their game with Polaris and Delta One lounges.

Access rules are worth knowing. Our DFW listing shows that Flagship business and first passengers on qualifying flights get in, as do AAdvantage Platinum members and above on a same-day international Flagship flight. Other oneworld Emerald and Sapphire members can use it on any same-day oneworld flight. A single-visit pass costs $150 or 15,000 miles, with no guests.

On the Admirals Club side, our best-rated clubs are Dallas/Fort Worth's Concourse D and Philadelphia's B/C club, both at 4.8. Weaker clubs are easy to find. American's own Phoenix club near gate A19 rates just 2.5, with little seating at peak times. Clubs like that are the obvious targets for a faster renovation program.

Also in the plan

Garboden also said seatback screens will come at every seat on new Airbus and Boeing jets delivered from 2028. She does not think phones have made screens obsolete. "It's all additive," she said. On food, American's Pecan Lodge barbecue partnership from Dallas/Fort Worth won an IFSA award this year. Lavazza coffee and Bollinger Champagne are now served in its lounges and on board.

What we don't know

American has not said which Boeing jets get Starlink first, or when the rollout will finish. It has not said what Starlink will cost passengers. On lounges, it has named no new airports beyond Chicago and Charlotte, and it has not said what a new Flagship lounge would look like. We will update our American Airlines page as details come out.