Hawaiian Airlines has confirmed that the installation of SpaceX’s Starlink Aviation inflight connectivity system on some of its aircraft has been delayed until next year.
Originally scheduled to begin this year, the installation of Starlink's WiFi has been delayed until early 2024.
The airline’s Airbus A321neo twinjets are expected to be the first to be fitted with the system.
The delay is due to the Starlink team still working on the certification and modification kits for the A321 and A330s, the first for each fleet type.
Initially announced in April of last year, Hawaiian Airlines confirmed that it will also equip its incoming Boeing 787-9s with Starlink Aviation IFC hardware to provide passengers with free WiFi.
Hawaiian doesn't have plans to install Starlink's connectivity on its Boeing 717s, which are mainly used for short-haul flights.
Starlink, which is a subsidiary of SpaceX, uses a low-profile electronically steerable antenna.
A number of other airlines including airBaltic, Zipair Tokyo, and JSX, have also chosen Starlink Aviation. JSX’s entire Embraer ERJ fleet is already fitted with the system.
SpaceX's agreement with private plane provider JSX covers service on up to 100 airplanes; JSX currently has 77 30-seat Embraer jets in its fleet.
