American Airlines Announces High-Speed Wi-Fi for Regional Jets

Image: American Airlines American Eagle Jet (Photo Credit: Courtesy American Airlines)

by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 6:25 PM ET, Thu November 30, 2023

American Airlines will make high-speed Wi-Fi available on dual-class regional aircraft over the coming two years.

The carrier said that it's working to extend its relationship with Intelsat (which purchased internet provider Gogo’s commercial business) to install high-speed Wi-Fi on about 500 regional aircraft starting in 2024.

American Airlines already provides high-speed Wi-Fi on more than 900 mainline aircraft, but hasn't provided the service at all on regional planes to date.

According to the announcement, the ultimate goal is to ensure that more than 1,400 of American Airlines' aircraft are ultimately flying with high-speed Wi-Fi capabilities.

“Inflight connectivity technology continues to evolve rapidly across the airline industry. Intelsat’s Electronically Steered Array (ESA) antennae is unique because it is multi-orbit, interoperating on both Intelsat’s family of geo-stationary satellites and on a constellation of Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites, providing low latency high-speed internet connection to American’s customers,” the carrier said in a statement.

The new Wi-Fi will allow American to provide regional aircraft passengers with the same service speeds as currently available on many mainline planes. American's regional jets include the Embraer E-175, Bombardier CR7 and CR9s.

American said it is “reinforcing its commitment to provide a consistent and connected experience for customers on all of American’s connectivity-equipped flights with the ability to stream, browse, check email and even log onto VPN while inflight.”

In other recent American Airlines news, the carrier recently cut American has cut all international flights from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. That includes a route from Seattle to London and a highly coveted slot at Heathrow Airport.