Starlink announced to customers this week via email that it has doubled the data allowance on its lower-cost Roam plan, increasing the cap from 50 GB to 100 GB with no change in monthly price.
I’ve been on the Starlink train for the past year and continue to believe that reliable inflight connectivity brings real value to the flight deck. Corporate operators and airlines have long relied on connected tools such as real-time turbulence reporting and weather data to improve safety and decision-making. Since installing Starlink in my Cessna 310, the system has been seamless to operate and offers lots of utility for pilot and passengers.
Still, Starlink has adjusted plan structures, pricing, and performance tiers at a rapid pace, creating uncertainty for aircraft owners. This latest move—doubling the Roam data cap while keeping pricing unchanged and maintaining low-speed connectivity after the cap—is encouraging. Hopefully, this signals that the company is—from a price standpoint—becoming more friendly to those of us who use Starlink in our GA cabins.
The one thing they “took” was the ability to buy extra data blocks. If you go over 100GB, it’s either upgrade to an Unlimited plan or be satisfied with the low speed data until the billing cycle ends.
Is 50 or 100gb really enough to run efb, navigate weather sites, allow passenger to FaceTime the kids, watch movies or scroll social media for 10 hours a month?
How about a practical article on how to stop or minimize the “data piracy” of the operating system and apps on our phones and tablets while connected via Starlink?
I love it that I live in a time and place where a life decision I have the privilege to make is whether or not to have high speed internet in my privately-owned airplane. Wow, what a gift.