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- Delta Air Lines is one of few carriers opting against installing Starlink internet on its planes.
- The airline instead tapped Amazon LEO in March to become its in-flight WiFi provider.
- Elon Musk hit out at Delta's choice on X, saying it would be "painful, difficult and expensive."
Elon Musk doesn't seem pleased with Delta Air Lines choosing a rival internet provider to Starlink.
Dozens of airlines around the world have struck deals with Starlink to give passengers free, high-speed WiFi. It connects to a constellation of over 10,000 satellites, helping provide connectivity in remote areas, such as over the ocean.
However, Delta instead tapped Amazon LEO in March to become its in-flight WiFi provider. Amazon's service has launched about 300 satellites so far.
On Wednesday, Musk replied to an X post that suggested Delta chose Amazon because it wanted customers to connect via its own Delta Sync portal.
"SpaceX requires that there be no annoying 'portal' to use Starlink," Musk posted. "Starlink WiFi must just work effortlessly every time, as though you were at home."
"Delta wanted to make it painful, difficult and expensive for their customers. Hard to see how that is a winning strategy," he added.
A Delta spokesperson told Business Insider that "the assertion in question is not accurate."The airline said it chose Amazon's Leo connectivity service over Starlink for "several reasons," including the potential for a "broader partnership" beyond just in-flight WiFi.
It added that Amazon met Delta's technical requirements and shared its vision for the "next era of connected travel," while adding that Delta's strategy is to equip different aircraft with the technology that best fits each fleet.
Delta also clarified that passengers would still have been able to access the Delta Sync portal via a SkyMiles login.
To the last point, while Starlink has pushed for a more seamless in-flight WiFi experience with minimal friction between passengers and the web, airlines using the service still route access through their own branded systems.
United Airlines' Starlink access, for example, is tied to its MileagePlus platform — with similar setups at Alaska Airlines and Qatar Airways.
Delta isn't saying its portal was an obstacle. It seems to want a deeper level of control over the ecosystem surrounding onboard internet than SpaceX may have preferred.
SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
Qatar has faced similar decisions in its Starlink strategy. Xia Cai, Qatar Airways' SVP of product development and design, talked at a 2024 APEX event about the airline's approach to customer engagement through its Starlink connectivity.
"There has to be a connection. Is it a transient connection? Or is it actually something that you're going to build to create an experience, which Delta has done really well on their Sync platform?" Cai said, the aviation website Paxex.Aero reported. "How do you engage [with passengers]?"
United is actively installing SpaceX technology and expects the rollout to be completed by the end of 2027. Delta's planned next-generation connectivity project with Amazon's Kuiper network is not expected to begin until 2028.
It isn't the first time this year that Musk has taken umbrage with an airline.
In January, Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary said he wasn't interested in Starlink, suggesting that installing the terminals on airplane fuselages would increase drag and, in turn, fuel costs.
Musk and O'Leary then engaged in a dayslong war of words, including Musk suggesting he could buy Ryanair, and calling for O'Leary's firing.
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