JetBlue Teams Up with Amazon to Offer Faster Wi-Fi
JetBlue today announced it will be the first airline in the world to sign on with Amazon’s Project Kuiper, an advanced low Earth orbit satellite broadband network.
The partnership will bring even faster and more reliable connectivity to its onboard Wi-Fi known as Fly-Fi. JetBlue launched Fly-Fi in 2013 and offers free, high-speed Wi-Fi on every aircraft in its fleet. JetBlue will start to introduce Project Kuiper on a portion of its fleet in 2027, with a phased rollout to follow.
“Our agreement with Project Kuiper marks an exciting leap forward for us as the hands-down leader in onboard connectivity,” said Marty St. George, president, JetBlue. “Whether it’s binge-watching a favorite show, staying connected with loved ones, or wrapping up a work project, we’re always looking for ways to make our customers’ time in the air as connected and productive as they want it to be.”
Project Kuiper promises high-speed, low-latency internet to customers and communities around the world. The system is built around a constellation of thousands of satellites in low Earth orbit—connected to each other by high-speed optical links that will create a mesh network in space—and linked to a global network of antennas, fiber, and internet connection points on the ground.
JetBlue will install Project Kuiper technology on aircraft currently flying JetBlue’s original Fly-Fi technology. While aircraft outfitted with Project Kuiper will rely on the new low Earth orbit system, JetBlue will also explore a multi-orbit solution in the future, which could combine the strengths of both its low Earth orbit and GEO networks.
