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American Airlines will provide its loyalty program customers with free Wi-Fi, making it the latest airline to woo travelers with enhanced connectivity.
The airline said free wireless internet service would be available starting in January for members of its AAdvantage program, applying to over two million flights a year and around 90% of its fleet. American has already been testing free Wi-Fi on certain flights, and said that the service surpassed performance expectations.
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Shares in American Airlines ticked up slightly in premarket trading.
Passengers have complained for years that in-flight internet is too spotty and too expensive. Airlines are racing to win those travelers over, seeking to make cheap and quick Wi-Fi an industry standard, and prompting the biggest carriers to test and roll out new technologies.
Delta Air Lines began providing free Wi-Fi to passengers in 2023. United Airlines said in September that it would provide free internet through Elon Musk’s Starlink service, and it anticipates starting to offer the service in May. JetBlue has offered free Wi-Fi for more than a decade.
The biggest airlines have won over passengers and captured a bigger slice of the industry’s profits by offering a menu of amenities that appeal to a range of travelers. Large carriers have also leveraged their loyalty programs and broader networks as points of differentiation with fliers.
“Our customers greatly value staying connected while in the air,” said Heather Garboden, American’s chief customer officer.
American said its free Wi-Fi offering with telecom giant AT&T will be powered by satellite companies Viasat and Intelsat. The airline was already a longtime AT&T customer, the company said. The airline aims to offer free Wi-Fi on more planes than any other domestic carrier.
American, the country’s second-largest carrier by passenger traffic, is trying to win back business travelers by offering perks and discounts. The airline’s sales suffered last year after an effort to overhaul its business travel program floundered, leading frustrated corporations to look elsewhere for air travel in recent years.
Airlines are also grappling with the potential fallout from an economic downturn, with uncertain consumers delaying travel bookings. Delta this month dropped its full-year financial outlook, citing a shaky outlook for demand.