On October 4 and 11, my wife and I travelled to the United States with WestJet and were pleasantly surprised by the airline’s new free in-flight Wi-Fi service, powered by TELUS and Starlink.
The service is exclusively available to WestJet Rewards members and TELUS customers; luckily, we happen to be both. Since TELUS is also our home internet provider, connecting onboard was quick and seamless.
We used the Wi-Fi on flights from Vancouver to Toronto and Toronto to Orlando, and the experience was smooth from start to finish. With the WestJet app installed on your phone or tablet, you can easily access the onboard network to watch movies, TV shows, YouTube videos, listen to music, or even send emails and chat on instant messengers, all free of charge.
WestJet and TELUS Partner with Starlink Technology
I’ve seen similar services on other international airlines before, but they were usually paid and expensive. This time, it was included in the ticket price and worked remarkably well, fast, stable, and easy to use. This represents a major leap in in-flight connectivity in Canada.
The initiative stems from a strategic partnership announced in July 2024 between WestJet and TELUS, powered by Starlink technology from SpaceX. WestJet will become North America’s largest and the first commercial Boeing 737 operator to provide Starlink’s high-speed, low-latency internet, enabling passengers to stream videos or even play online games just as they would at home.
The new system was implemented at the end of 2024, with the entire narrow-body fleet scheduled to be fully equipped by the end of 2025, and the wide-body aircraft by the end of 2026.
For TELUS customers and WestJet Rewards members, access will remain completely free, requiring only the creation of a WestJet Rewards account before the flight.
