While SpaceX’s Starlink division offers high-bandwidth satcom systems for business aircraft, owners of single-engine airplanes and light jets have been testing the use of Starlink Mini portable antennas for relatively fast airborne connectivity at a fraction of the cost of Starlink’s official aviation service.
Starlink Mini systems cost $599 and fees for the Mobile Priority service start at $250 per month for 50 GB. While this portable system is not targeted for aviation use, Starlink is allowing aviation users to tap into Mobile Priority but with a limitation of a maximum 250-knot groundspeed, according to a Starlink representative who explained the policy to AIN. The $50 per month Mini Roam service will not work in an aircraft.
Technically, there is no maximum-speed limitation for the low-earth-orbit Starlink network, as can be seen when viewing videos of SpaceX launches, which use Starlink to transmit high-bandwidth data at rocket speeds. The Starlink network consists of more than 7,000 satellites, and that number continues to grow. Coverage is global, including polar regions, although there are restrictions in certain countries that apply to all satcom providers, and this list is provided on the Starlink website.
For aircraft owners and operators that want Starlink for higher-speed flying at greater bandwidth, they can opt for the official Starlink aviation equipment, which costs $150,000, with service plans ranging from $2,000 for 50 GB to $10,000 unlimited per month. Installation in a business jet brings the total to nearly $300,000, according to Starlink dealers queried by AIN.
Starlink and its partners AeroMech and Nextant Aerospace have developed FAA-approved supplemental type certificate (STC) installations of aviation systems in a growing number of airplanes, ranging from the Beechcraft King Air 200/300 to some midsize jets and large-cabin Gulfstreams and Bombardiers. Many more STCs are underway for airplanes that range from the Cessna Caravan and Pilatus PC-12 to Cessna Citations, Embraers, Falcons, and more Gulfstreams. Starlink has signed up 24 dealers thus far, and these have installed 300 systems in business aircraft. The backlog stands are more than 1,000 systems.
There is no plan to offer an STC for mounting a Starlink Mini antenna externally on light aircraft, according to the Starlink representative. The company isn’t planning to develop a smaller antenna for the official aviation system, but the large antenna can be fitted to smaller aircraft as demonstrated by AeroMech’s King Air STC.
The suitability of Starlink Mini for aviation use came up during recent discussions on Facebook and some aviation forums, with pilots reporting high-bandwidth service with the Mini antenna mounted (temporarily) in a sky-facing window. Some Cirrus owners, for example, are suction-cupping the antenna inside the rear window above the baggage compartment or positioning the antenna near the window with some kind of temporary means of holding the antenna in place. As long as the antenna isn’t permanently installed, there shouldn’t be any regulatory impediments. However, it should be noted that a lightly secured piece of equipment could come loose in turbulence or during an accident.
The antenna weighs about 2.5 pounds and measures 11.75 by 10.2 inches. Power requirement for the Starlink Mini system is 12 to 48 volts at 60 watts, with users reporting better results with 24 volts. Some users are hooking Starlink Mini up to separate batteries instead of trying to run it from the aircraft’s power; USB ports don’t have enough power to run Starlink Mini.
A comment on Facebook includes: “I’m using a Mini in my Baron with no problems at 185 ktas.” Another pilot wrote, “I hardwired a 3-foot, 16-awg wire from the aft firewall. I can switch it on and off from the cockpit. Results are much improved…This post is live from 11.5k [feet]. This is a serious game-changer for general aviation. I am sitting here studying internet radar at my destination when all I get from ADS-B is the low-res radar.”
A Cirrus owner wrote: “Watching ‘Airplane’ the movie while in your airplane, now easy with Starlink! Can also be used for more practical things like AviationWeather [dot] gov in flight and internet-fed radar in Garmin Pilot. Also worked great for Wi-Fi calling on my cell and streaming Pandora internet radio. Mounting was not an issue with the 3D print files available, and the connection speeds are a total game-changer for flying.”
A pilot and aircraft owner listed as “username protected” on the Phenom Pilots online forum claims to be running a Starlink Mini system in an Embraer Phenom 300 light jet with great success, by mounting the antenna next to a cabin window. This owner didn’t address the effect of the speed limitation.
Cirrus SR22 owner and pilot Brad Pierce has been using Starlink Mini in his airplane and built a mount for the antenna using PVC pipe and quick connectors for rotating it into position. He powers Starlink with a portable battery pack that he stores in the center console between the front seats. “To demonstrate its temporary nature, there are no tools needed to install or de-install the system, and the total time to remove it is eight seconds,” he told AIN. “Nobody could argue that would constitute anything permanent. It doesn’t alter the aircraft,” although he ensured that it is held firmly enough to prevent the equipment from getting loose in turbulence.
Pierce is seeing up to 100 Mbps downloads and 10 Mpbs uploads on Starlink’s Mobile Priority service. He uses Starlink only when flying in visual meteorological conditions and in cruise, not during takeoff, approach, or landing. His preference is to use Starlink to access weather information that is more comprehensive and updated more often than ADS-B In or SiriusXM weather.
“We live in a dynamic world,” he said. “Seeing what’s changed—beyond what’s listed in XM, which gives a good picture—but having more real-time notification and how the weather has evolved…we have all seen weather that’s not forecast, especially in the summer in Florida. This is a fantastic tool from an operational standpoint.“
Another important use is to see rapid changes in wind speed and direction at the destination airport and much further away and more timely than hourly ATIS broadcasts. “It reduces the pilot workload,” he said. “Decisions on the fly become immediate operational ones rather than learning the facts along the way. It provides operational visibility well ahead of time. Starlink teleports me, with real-time visibility of what the destination looks like as opposed to getting the information as I approach the airport.”
Another potentially helpful use of high-speed connectivity is access to live aviation web camera feeds. Pierce also likes the immediacy of Starlink internet access while using the Garmin Pilot app in flight as opposed to connecting the app via a wireless gateway to his SR22’s Garmin Perspective avionics.
"With passengers onboard,” he said, “I prefer them to watch the greatest channel in the air, out the window, but passengers from time to time get less mesmerized with that. With children on board, having them be entertained while you focus on being a pilot, that’s better than them yelling, ‘Are we there yet?’”
As a proponent of using high-speed connectivity for safety purposes, Pierce is not impressed with the Facebook pilot who not only bragged about watching a movie while flying but posted photos of this activity. “I cringe,” he said. “That’s reckless and irresponsible. Anything non-aviation-related, that should be restricted to passengers.” Pierce compares the distractions endemic to airborne internet access to pilots reading books while flying long distance with the autopilot on. “The onus [for safety] is on the pilot. Any new technology needs to be used responsibly."
“General aviation is critical to my livelihood,” Pierce said, “but not to compromise safety for a bright shiny nickel. I use Starlink for the good it provides. This is one of the greatest things to happen in general aviation in the past decade.”
(Editor’s note: this article has been updated with new information provided by Starlink as well as Brad Pierce.)
While SpaceX’s Starlink division offers high-bandwidth satcom systems for business aircraft, owners of single-engine airplanes and light jets have been testing the use of Starlink Mini portable antennas for relatively fast airborne connectivity at a fraction of the cost of Starlink’s official aviation service.
Starlink Mini systems cost $599 and fees for the Mobile Priority service start at $250 per month for 50 GB. While this portable system is not targeted for aviation use, Starlink is allowing aviation users to tap into Mobile Priority but with a limitation of a maximum 250-knot groundspeed, according to a Starlink representative who explained the policy to AIN. The $50 per month Mini Roam service will not work in an aircraft.
Technically, there is no maximum-speed limitation for the low-earth-orbit Starlink network, as can be seen when viewing videos of SpaceX launches, which use Starlink to transmit high-bandwidth data at rocket speeds. The Starlink network consists of more than 7,000 satellites, and that number continues to grow.
For aircraft owners and operators that want Starlink for higher-speed flying at greater bandwidth, they can opt for the official Starlink aviation equipment, which costs $150,000, with service plans ranging from $2,000 for 50 GB to $10,000 unlimited per month. Installation in a business jet brings the total to nearly $300,000, according to Starlink dealers queried by AIN.
Starlink and its partners AeroMech and Nextant Aerospace have developed FAA-approved supplemental type certificate (STC) installations of aviation systems in a growing number of airplanes, ranging from the Beechcraft King Air 200/300 to some midsize jets and large-cabin Gulfstreams and Bombardiers. Many more STCs are underway for airplanes that range from the Cessna Caravan and Pilatus PC-12 to Cessna Citations, Embraers, Falcons, and more Gulfstreams.
There is no plan to offer an STC for mounting a Starlink Mini antenna externally on light aircraft, according to the Starlink representative. The company isn’t planning to develop a smaller antenna for the official aviation system, but the large antenna can be fitted to smaller aircraft as demonstrated by AeroMech’s King Air STC.
The suitability of Starlink Mini for aviation use came up during recent discussions on Facebook and some aviation forums, with pilots reporting high-bandwidth service with the Mini antenna mounted (temporarily) in a sky-facing window. Some Cirrus owners, for example, are suction-cupping the antenna inside the rear window above the baggage compartment or positioning the antenna near the window with some kind of temporary means of holding the antenna in place. As long as the antenna isn’t permanently installed, there shouldn’t be any regulatory impediments. However, it should be noted that a lightly secured piece of equipment could come loose in turbulence or during an accident.
The antenna weighs about 2.5 pounds and measures 11.75 by 10.2 inches. Power requirement for the Starlink Mini system is 12 to 48 volts at 60 watts, with users reporting better results with 24 volts. Some users are hooking Starlink Mini up to separate batteries instead of trying to run it from the aircraft’s power; USB ports don’t have enough power to run Starlink Mini.
A comment on Facebook includes: “I’m using a Mini in my Baron with no problems at 185 ktas.” Another pilot wrote, “I hardwired a 3-foot, 16-awg wire from the aft firewall. I can switch it on and off from the cockpit. Results are much improved…This post is live from 11.5k [feet]. This is a serious game-changer for general aviation. I am sitting here studying internet radar at my destination when all I get from ADS-B is the low-res radar.”
A Cirrus owner wrote: “Watching ‘Airplane’ the movie while in your airplane, now easy with Starlink! Can also be used for more practical things like AviationWeather [dot] gov in flight and internet-fed radar in Garmin Pilot. Also worked great for Wi-Fi calling on my cell and streaming Pandora internet radio. Mounting was not an issue with the 3D print files available, and the connection speeds are a total game-changer for flying.”
A pilot and aircraft owner listed as “username protected” on the Phenom Pilots online forum claims to be running a Starlink Mini system in an Embraer Phenom 300 light jet with great success, by mounting the antenna next to a cabin window. This owner didn’t address the effect of the speed limitation.
Cirrus SR22 owner and pilot Brad Pierce has been using Starlink Mini in his airplane and built a mount for the antenna using PVC pipe and quick connectors for rotating it into position. He powers Starlink with a portable battery pack that he stores in the center console between the front seats. “To demonstrate its temporary nature, there are no tools needed to install or de-install the system, and the total time to remove it is eight seconds,” he told AIN. “Nobody could argue that would constitute anything permanent. It doesn’t alter the aircraft,” although he ensured that it is held firmly enough to prevent the equipment from getting loose in turbulence.
Pierce is seeing up to 100 Mbps downloads and 10 Mpbs uploads on Starlink’s Mobile Priority service. He uses Starlink only when flying in visual meteorological conditions and in cruise, not during takeoff, approach, or landing. His preference is to use Starlink to access weather information that is more comprehensive and updated more often than ADS-B In or SiriusXM weather.
“We live in a dynamic world,” he said. “Seeing what’s changed—beyond what’s listed in XM, which gives a good picture—but having more real-time notification and how the weather has evolved…we have all seen weather that’s not forecast, especially in the summer in Florida. This is a fantastic tool from an operational standpoint.“
Another important use is to see rapid changes in wind speed and direction at the destination airport and much further away and more timely than hourly ATIS broadcasts. “It reduces the pilot workload,” he said. “Decisions on the fly become immediate operational ones rather than learning the facts along the way. It provides operational visibility well ahead of time. Starlink teleports me, with real-time visibility of what the destination looks like as opposed to getting the information as I approach the airport.”
Another potentially helpful use of high-speed connectivity is access to live aviation web camera feeds. Pierce also likes the immediacy of Starlink internet access while using the Garmin Pilot app in flight as opposed to connecting the app via a wireless gateway to his SR22’s Garmin Perspective avionics.
"With passengers onboard,” he said, “I prefer them to watch the greatest channel in the air, out the window, but passengers from time to time get less mesmerized with that. With children on board, having them be entertained while you focus on being a pilot, that’s better than them yelling, ‘Are we there yet?’”
As a proponent of using high-speed connectivity for safety purposes, Pierce is not impressed with the Facebook pilot who not only bragged about watching a movie while flying but posted photos of this activity. “I cringe,” he said. “That’s reckless and irresponsible. Anything non-aviation-related, that should be restricted to passengers.” Pierce compares the distractions endemic to airborne internet access to pilots reading books while flying long distance with the autopilot on. “The onus [for safety] is on the pilot. Any new technology needs to be used responsibly."
“General aviation is critical to my livelihood,” Pierce said, “but not to compromise safety for a bright shiny nickel. I use Starlink for the good it provides. This is one of the greatest things to happen in general aviation in the past decade.”
(Editor’s note: this article has been updated with new information provided by Starlink as well as Brad Pierce.)