Delta in-flight connectivity takes off with Amazon Leo

With rival airlines busily upping the ante in their connectivity options, Delta Air Lines has entered into a collaboration with Amazon to bring high-speed, low-latency internet from Amazon Leo, Amazon’s low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite service, to Delta aircraft.

The two companies claim that the partnership will mean they are “driving the future of travel and technology”, and this will see them unlock the next generation of tech-enabled travel experiences.

One of the world’s largest airlines, Delta began life just over 100 years ago as the first commercial agricultural flying company providing crop dusting services. The 18 Huff Daland Dusters planes became one of the largest privately owned fleets in the US, and subsequently, the company operated the first international mail and passenger route on the west coast of South America for Pan Am subsidiary Peruvian Airways.

Fast forward, and Delta’s current fleet of aircraft is undergoing significant renewal and expansion to match its international and premium growth strategy in the next decade and beyond. It recently exercised options for 34 additional Airbus A321neo aircraft, reinforcing the plane’s role as a pillar of Delta’s next-generation narrowbody fleet.

This was the third recent aircraft order announced by Delta. In February 2026, it announced two separate orders totalling more than 60 widebody aircraft for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, as well as the Airbus A330-900 and A350-900. 

The new connectivity agreement expands on the companies’ existing collaboration and will also build on the airline’s use of Amazon Web Services (AWS) across its operation, aiming to deliver new connected experiences to benefit Delta customers and employees alike. Indeed, Delta and Amazon plan to partner to integrate AWS, Amazon Leo, other Amazon technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the customer experience across the entire travel journey. 

Delta will introduce Amazon Leo internet access on hundreds of Delta aircraft, starting with an initial installation on 500 aircraft beginning in 2028, and work with Amazon to expand its popular Delta Sync Wi‑Fi and seatback experiences, offering customers more personalised connections onboard.

Amazon describes the Leo service as offering a new era of internet with its most advanced options, delivering the fastest satellite connectivity speeds of up to 1Gbps in download and 400Mbps upload.

Delta said it will use Amazon Leo’s “cutting-edge” satellite technology to bring more fast digital experiences on board Delta’s domestic and international flights, like streaming films and TV shows. It also cited potential use cases using the upload capacity, including photos and videos in real time, to securely send presentations or business files while in the air.

Commenting on the deployment, Delta CEO Ed Bastian said: “Delta’s future is global. This agreement gives us the fastest and most cost-effective technology available to better connect the world today, and it deepens our work with a global leader that shares our ambition to build what’s next – creating even stronger human connection for our people and our customers for years to come.”

Andy Jassy, president and CEO of Amazon, said: “We’ve designed Leo to provide high-speed internet to the billions of people on Earth without reliable connectivity, and this agreement with Delta is a great example of the impact and scale of the technology – bringing even faster in-flight Wi-Fi to tens of millions of passengers who fly Delta every year.

“People increasingly want to stay connected wherever they are in the world, and Leo’s speed and reliability is going to have a big impact for businesses, governments and consumers. It’s going to make the in-flight experience so much better, and it’s going to change what’s possible while travelling.”