Airline · Europe

British Airways Wi-Fi

British Airways is moving from its BAWi-Fi service to free Starlink Wi-Fi, starting with the 787-8 in March 2026. British Airways Club members get messaging free on BAWi-Fi and full internet free on Starlink.

Provider: Starlink, BAWi-Fi (provider not named)
Network: BAWi-Fi
Free: BA Starlink is free in every cabin for members of The British Airways Club, with no data limits.

Checked 1 November 2026. Prices and policies as of November 2026.

Who provides it

Starlink
The BA Starlink network began on Boeing 787-8 aircraft in March 2026. A wider rollout is planned for the long-haul and short-haul fleet.
BAWi-Fi (provider not named)
The older BAWi-Fi network on most other aircraft. British Airways doesn’t name who runs it.

What’s free

BA Starlink is free in every cabin for members of The British Airways Club, with no data limits. Joining the Club is free.
Members of partner programmes also get it free on a British Airways booking. These include Aer Lingus AerClub, American AAdvantage, Iberia Plus, Qatar Privilege Club, Qantas Frequent Flyer, JAL Mileage Bank and Finnair Plus. Add your number to the booking before you fly.
Free Messaging on BAWi-Fi is for British Airways Club members of every tier, on all connected aircraft. It covers text in apps such as WhatsApp, iMessage and Facebook Messenger, on one device. Images and videos are not included.
First customers get the Browse & Stream package free on BAWi-Fi.

As of November 2026.

Prices

Plan	Price
Messaging, non-members, short-haul	£1.99 to £2.99
Messaging, non-members, long-haul	£2.99 to £4.99
Browse & Stream, short-haul	£4.99 to £11.99
Browse & Stream, long-haul	£4.99 to £21.99

These are BAWi-Fi prices. BA Starlink has no charge for eligible members. You can buy BAWi-Fi as a guest, or with an optional account that stores cards and sends receipts.

As of November 2026.

Streaming and calls

On BAWi-Fi, streaming of music, video and films needs the Browse & Stream package. On BA Starlink, British Airways says streaming, gaming and video calls work. It quotes download speeds to the aircraft of up to 500+ Mbps. Use headphones for any audio or video.

VPNs

British Airways’ Starlink page recommends using a VPN for extra security if you have one. Its BAWi-Fi page doesn’t mention VPNs.

Which planes have it

Wi-Fi is on most aircraft. Starlink began on the 787-8 on 19 March 2026. British Airways expects its whole fleet of more than 300 aircraft to have it within two years, except BA Cityflyer. BA Starlink has no service over Russia, China, Belarus, North Korea, Northern Cyprus or India.

How to connect

On an aircraft with Starlink:

If you use a partner programme, add your frequent flyer number to the booking before you fly.
In your Wi-Fi settings, choose BA Starlink.
Sign in with your British Airways Club or partner details, then tap Start browsing. If the page doesn’t open, go to Starlink.ba.com.
You can use the same details on several devices at once.

On other aircraft, wait for the crew to say Wi-Fi is on, then join BAWi-Fi. Open a browser and go to shop.ba.com. Tap the free messaging banner to sign in to the Club, or buy a package. Service usually starts about ten minutes after take-off, around 10,000 ft.

On board with Kilobat

Kilobat is a Mac menu-bar app that shows what each app sends and holds back what can wait. On a plane:

The sign-in page. When it doesn’t open by itself, the menu bar says This Wi-Fi wants you to sign in, with Open sign-in page. Turn your VPN on after you’ve signed in.
Mark it metered. macOS treats plane Wi-Fi as unlimited. Mark it Metered in Kilobat’s Wi-Fi menu or with kilobat networks cost metered, and Kilobat skips its own speed tests. If automatic switching is enabled, it switches to Travel.
Updates wait. With Pro, paused updaters enabled and the network filter on, macOS Software Update, App Store downloads, Google Updater and Microsoft AutoUpdate wait for an unmetered network. The apps keep working.
See what’s using it. Every app’s upload and download, live in the menu bar, so a messaging-only plan isn’t spent on a sync you forgot.
Send later. A big upload, such as Dropbox syncing a folder, shows as a row with its speed. With Pro, Send later can hold it until you’re on unmetered Wi-Fi again, for up to eight hours while Kilobat is open.
Know what’s slow. Health shows latency and loss, and with Pro their history through the flight. Those measurements can help you investigate a slow connection. When Slack or Zoom won’t load, Is it them or me? reads the service’s status page.

Questions

Is British Airways Wi-Fi free?

Messaging is free for British Airways Club members on BAWi-Fi. Full internet is free for Club and partner members on aircraft with BA Starlink. Other BAWi-Fi packages cost £1.99 to £21.99.

Can under-18s use BA Starlink?

Yes, through a Club household account. They sign in with the account owner’s details. Children travelling alone should ask the cabin crew after boarding.

Sources

Checked on 1 November 2026.