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Simple Flying Aviation News Podcast
#280: Southwest Airlines' Starlink WiFi, NBC Sportscaster Flies Straight From Super Bowl To Olympics
00:33:17
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- [00:05]
A
Hello, I'm Channing Reed.
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B
And I'm Jennifer Pierce.
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A
Welcome to a brand new episode of the Simple Flying Podcast where we'll give you the lowdown on the latest news from the world of commercial aviation. Here's what we have for you this week.
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B
Coming up today, Channing will cover the new in flight addition that Southwest Airlines passengers will soon be raving about. Before I talk about how an NBA NBC sportscaster covered the super bowl and the Olympics in person just 15 hours
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A
apart, I'll then look at Air Canada's new plans to boost its international footprint. And then Jennifer will discuss how London Heathrow Airport is no longer Europe's busiest airport.
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B
And finally, Channing will explore what led the FAA to announce a 10 day closure of El Paso Airport and then quickly retract it.
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A
Yeah, that was a top story this week. So now you know what's in store. Let's get on with. And Jennifer, thanks so much for joining me today back on the podcast in for Tom who's on vacation this week. How are you?
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B
I'm doing well and thank you so much for having me.
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A
Absolutely. It's always a joy to have you on. And yeah, there's a lot of headlines in the news this week. We'll first begin with Southwest Airlines. This is some pretty big news coming out of the Dallas based carrier. It is going to be the fourth US Airline to offer Starlink WI FI on board and again, some passengers. I actually would imagine a lot of passengers excited about this development given that the performance of Starlink is just amazing. From what I've heard, engineering by SpaceX Starlex will deliver next generation WI FI across Southwest's network of 11 countries allowing passengers to stream, share and scroll in the sky at lightning fast speeds. Now Southwest plans to rapidly integrate Starlink into its fleet. The first Starlink equipped aircraft will enter service this summer and it will be available on more than 300 of its aircraft by the end of this year. This is a major step in the carrier's plan to upgrade all its aircraft with high speed low earth orbit satellite technology. Starlink is a constellation of more than 9,000 satellites that orbit close to Earth delivering reliable high speed Internet access across the world. Now this technology supports in flight entertainment with the high definition streaming and live gaming with real time messaging and productivity with the ability to collaborate and upload large files in just seconds. Tony Roach, Executive Vice president of chief customer and Brand Officer at Southwest Airlines said quote, free WI Fi has been a huge hit with our Rapids Rewards members and we know our customers expect seamless connectivity across all their devices when they travel. He went on to say Starlink delivers that at home experience in the air, giving customers the ability to stream their favorite shows from any platform, watch live sports, download music, play games, work and connect with loved ones from takeoff to landing. Now, Southwest is the largest US Airline to offer access to free WI FI fleet wide to its loyalty members thanks to T Mobile. Now, launching Starlink's fastest WI FI in the sky is just one of many ways the airline is doing more to elevate the cabin experience. And we have reported on this on Simple Flying. This includes the airline offering more choice and comfort with assigned seating and premium seating. Although I should mention I don't know if you've seen it, Jennifer, but there's been a lot of disappointment with the rollout of the assigned seating. I've just been seeing on social media that a lot of passengers are not too happy with Southwest's decision to go away from open seating, which is something that has been a staple at the airline for 50 plus years. So it'll be very interesting to see how this moves forward. I will say maybe, though Starlink might be that one incentive for passengers to continue to book their flights on Southwest. I literally just saw on threads last night that there was a family that they were saying, you know what, we're no longer going to fly on Southwest because we've heard that this assigned seating rollout has been a nightmare and not just with getting on board and finding your seat, taking your seat, but also an issue with being able to have space in the overhead bins and things like that. So again, a lot of things that the airline will have to address in terms of passenger satisfaction. But some of the other things that we have reported on is along with assigned seating and premium seating, the airline is working on updating the cabin interior with new aircraft seats made by Recaro. They're also installing in seat power at every seat, larger overhead bins and seat backs with a personal device holder, extra legroom, which we've reported on, and enhanced snack options and then also optimizing the boarding process and offering earlier boarding to customers sitting in extra legs, room seats and other perks for their Rapids Rewards members. So yes, Starlink definitely seems to be the cherry on top, if you will, in terms of this change of the becoming the new Southwest, if you will. Jason Fritsch, the vice president of Starlink enterprise sales at SpaceX, said, quote, we're thrilled to deliver a connectivity experience to Southwest Airlines and its customers that is really familiar. If not better than what you can experience in your own home. Starlink is the future of connected travel, making every journey faster, smoother, and infinitely more enjoyable. Again, the rollout is expected to begin this summer on its aircraft. And then by the end of this year, the airline's expecting to have around 300 planes equipped with this Starlink Wi Fi. So we've reported on United Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, and now Southwest. So it'll be very interesting to see if the other two major carriers, American and Delta, follow suit with this offering.
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B
Absolutely. It definitely seems like Southwest, at least this is my perception, it seems like Southwest is perhaps trying to keep up or compete with or at least keep up with the other U.S. majors. And it's interesting to see this announcement. I'm not sure if you saw, but I believe it was United Airlines had a Super bowl commercial that was all about their Starlink offering.
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A
Yes, I did see that. It's funny because I saw that and I thought, I wonder if this is misleading because they're slowly rolling out Starlink on the mainline aircraft. A lot of the regional aircraft have that Starlink already. But someone else who is a journalist, aviation journalist, I saw their social media and they had posted that they wanted to watch the Super Bowl. They were flying in the middle of the super bowl and they couldn't. But they had trouble watching it because. Or streaming it, if you will, because there wasn't Starlink on their plane. And it's like, well, if you really dug into the news, you would see that Starlink is coming on United. It's just a slower rollout on the mainline front. But, yes, very interesting. And I think that is something, a thing to run with. Right. People hear about Starlink and they're like, oh, United has it. Okay, I'm going to book my flight.
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B
Absolutely. Absolutely. A lot goes into, you know, the amenities, or is it the auxiliary, you know, add ons just kind of emphasizes the importance of the amenities, you know, in marketing, aviation marketing and, you know, to appeal to passengers. So.
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A
Absolutely.
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B
Hopefully they'll deliver.
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A
Yes. Yeah, that is the hope. Speaking of the super bowl, that just happened this past weekend, the Olympics are also happening right now. Jennifer, talk to me about this sportscaster who was able to be on air 15 hours apart in two different countries.
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B
Absolutely. Well, I think we both share an interest in journalism and broadcasting. Right. And it's certainly an exciting time of year in sports. So today we're talking about the intersection of the sports and entertainment industry and aviation. After the Super bowl on February 8, NBC's Mike Tirico immediately flew via private jet from Oakland Airport to Milan, covering roughly 6,000 miles in just over 10 hours. Although it is somewhat rare to see a long haul private jet used so visibly, this illustrates the capabilities of private flying and shows how transparent modern travel has become, with enthusiasts online able to track aircraft movements in real time. A Bombardier Global 7500 was used for the flight, which is an aircraft designed for ultra long sectors with a maximum flight time of about 17 hours. And this isn't the only story from the past week that spotlighted sports and private aviation. In another private aviation story involving the 2026 Winter Olympics, Dutch speed sports skater Yuta Leerdem made headlines before even stepping on the ice, documenting her journey to the event on a private jet chartered by her fiance, Jake Paul. So it's certainly interesting to see, for me at least, this intersection of, and we know it's a growing sector, private aviation, sports and the entertainment industry.
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A
Yeah, for sure. And I can only imagine for Mike Tirico, like, I hope he was able to sleep at least on that. That's a long flight, you know, in a private jet. Yeah, Very, very exciting. But it is, you know. Yeah, of course they had to get him to where he needed to be and, you know, the Global 7500 is the perfect aircraft to do that. I did see on, I think it was X that had he flown commercially, you know, it would have taken so much longer and likely would have had to have a stop somewhere. Oakland doesn't have any nonstop destinations to Europe. So, yeah, it is very, very exciting to see that. But I can only imagine being on air 15 hours apart. The flight took 10 hours. It's probably right. As soon as the super bowl was over, you got to rush over to the airport. Hopefully he got a shower once he landed in Italy. But yeah, private aviation is definitely something that I think it gets a lot of interest among aviation enthusiasts because we talk about how the carbon footprint is so much different when you're flying private compared to commercial and how celebrities are constantly flying private. We've covered how there was that. I don't know exactly who it was, but they were tracking Elon Musk's private flights and how that kind of got. There was a little drama surrounded with that. Taylor Swift's private jets as well. Yeah. So it's definitely a subject to talk about for sure. But for the needs of journalism and for covering, like you said, the intersection between sports and entertainment, the private aviation seems to be the way to go in this case. And then Also with the Olympics, we had mentioned the Olympian using the private jet as well. I would say if you have the money to do it, why not? I've never flown in a private jet before. I would love to get that opportunity at some point. But I'm also just the aviation enthusiast that I am. I'm just happy to be on any plane, in any class. As long as I have a window seat, I'm usually okay.
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B
Yeah, that story is completely different because then you start to wonder like, does it give someone a competitive edge, you know, to have access to? I don't know, but, but it's an. I think that was a bit more controversial maybe, that story for sure. You know, I don't know a lot of the details, but it's a lot to consider. It's an interesting subject, for sure.
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A
Yeah, it definitely is. You definitely have to consider that. Is there a competitive edge there? I would imagine that a lot of these athletes I know, Team USA flies on Delta Airlines and I can only imagine that Delta gives them top tier service on board so that they get that rest. But yeah, it'll be very interesting to see the differences between flying commercially and private and if there are any advantages with that. From Italy, we are going to go to Canada now and speak about an airline that has placed an order for new Airbus widebody aircraft. That is Air Canada. They announced this on Wednesday, February 11, the next phase of their fleet modernization program with the addition of the Airbus A350 1000. The airline will welcome eight aircraft to its fleet and has rights to purchase another eight, with delivery scheduled to begin in the second half of 2030. Now, the A350 1000 is gaining popularity compared to its smaller variant, the 900. It's powered by XWB97 engines from Rolls Royce and fabricated using lighter weight materials. It's estimated that the aircraft will deliver up to 25% fuel consumption reduction compared to the previous generation aircraft. As estimated by Airbus. The A350 1000 has a potential range of approximately 9,000 thousand nautical miles. Now, Mark Gallardo, Gallardo, the Executive Vice President and Commercial Chief Commercial Officer and President of Cargo at Air Canada, said, quote, Air Canada's acquisition of the Airbus A350 1000 will further solidify our position as a leading global airline through the next decade. The state of the art aircraft adds a new dimension to Air Canada's long haul capabilities and with impressive range, enhanced payload and proven economics that unlock new possibilities for long haul flying for our customers. He went on to say, these highly capable Aircraft complement our existing fleet by providing flexibility in support of a growing, resilient and diversified future network. The Airbus A350 1000 will play a central role in defining Air Canada's next era, connecting our customers, our hubs and our country to the world. Now, as I mentioned, this is part of a fleet modernization project here at Air Canada. So according to Airbus, passengers will be able to experience the quietest twin aisle cabin that's available. It's designed to be pressurized to only 6,000ft to reduce stress on the body, minimize jet lag and deliver a noticeably more comfortable Travel experience. The A350 1000 will come equipped with the latest generation in flight entertainment screens and connectivity, as well as Air Canada's new cabin standard, which is being introduced later this year. So there's that order for eight A350 1000s. It's in addition to 14 Boeing 787, 10 Dreamliners that are expected to start entering service later this year. Air Canada is also set to welcome in the coming months the first of its 30 Airbus A321XLRs. And it continues to take deliveries of the Canadian assembled Airbus A220. With 23 aircraft remaining on its firm order of 65, and an additional additional Boeing 737 Max, eight aircraft on lease are expected to enter service in 2026. So Air Canada says these aircraft will enter with its next generation cabin design in standard, including enhanced connectivity and in flight entertainment offerings. So it's going to be very exciting to see the A350 1000 in Air Canada's fleet. I will say, from the experience of flying on both the 1000 and the 900, it is, it is a very, very quiet cabin. And those planes are just the power on those planes, you get up into the sky, before you know it, you're at cruising altitude, the seatbelt sign comes off. It's a great experience in my opinion. So, yeah, this will be Air Canada's, I believe they currently operate the A330. So this will be a second Airbus Widebody series in their fleet and of course, it will definitely complement the operations of its Dreamliners and its plan to boost its international footprint. So some exciting news there.
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B
Yeah, interesting. It's almost eerie sometimes when you're on board an aircraft, one of the newer aircrafts that's really quiet. Would you agree? Yes. It's almost like tasks stand still, you're like, are we moving? This is weird.
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A
It's incredible how they're, how Boeing and Airbus and Other, other aircraft manufacturers are able to make planes like this now because it is, it's almost like a spaceship. Like you're just, you get up into the sky and then before you know it, you're at your destination. And also, yeah, the reduced cabin altitude like that really does make a difference. I flew on the 1000 from LA to London and I, yes, still had jet lag, but when I landed in London I was not like super tired compared to the last time I flew internationally and that was on a 767. And I remember just having so much trouble, you know, when I was altogether, yeah, for sure. So it is, you know, that innovation and that technology, it really goes a long way in terms of long haul flights. And one airport that has a lot of long haul flights, that's London Heathrow Airport, actually.
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B
Yes. Our next story is about two airports with a lot of long haul flights. London Heathrow Airport is widely recognized as Europe's busiest airport and it has held the title for decades. However, that is all shifting. In 2025, it narrowly beat Istanbul Airport by the slimmest of margins, serving 84.48 million passengers compared with Istanbul's 84.4, according to ACI Europe data. However, with traffic growth stalling in London and in contrast, robust increases continuing in Istanbul, aviation insiders now expect Heathrow to lose the crown in 2026. Heathrow's relatively flat growth reflects longstanding Runway and slot constraints. Despite strong demand, the airport's two Runway system limits the number of flights that can be schedul. Plans for a third Runway have been approved, but construction isn't expected to be complete until the mid-2030s. This means Heathrow's ability to scale traffic in the immediate term is sharply limited. Meanwhile, the situation is very different at Istanbul Airport. Since opening in 2019, it has rapidly expanded both passenger numbers and its route network. What's more, Istanbul's airport infrastructure is newer and larger and can still absorb additional traffic.
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You know, 84. Did you say 84.48 million?
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Yeah, million passengers, 84.44 or 44. So yeah, very slim margins there. The point the decimals did kind of throw me off, right? Not even 84 versus 85. It's both within that. That's very similar range.
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A
Yeah, that is definitely interesting to observe and look at. And to your point, with the Runway and the constraints at London Heathrow, we could see that the 84 turns to 85 at Istanbul Airport. So it is incredible how these airports, these mega hubs, are able to accommodate so Much traffic. But yeah, when you do look at it, yeah, Heathrow definitely needs a third Runway in terms of, to be able to accommodate more traffic. It just seems like as the years go on we see more flights, we see more passengers. Even the bounce back since COVID has been incredible across the world. So yeah, I guess maybe London Heathrow might have its crown knocked off its head for a little while until they can.
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B
I was a flight attendant, of course, you know this for eight years for Delta and I did of course a lot of London Heathrows. I don't have very many regrets but one of the regrets I do have is that I never got a chance to work Istanbul. It was a very popular, very. It always went very senior. There's a chance, I mean I could have maybe picked it up but I didn't. And I also did non rev there and I regret that for sure. So it's definitely on my list of places to travel.
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A
Oh yes, I would love to travel there too. And I did not know that you worked international flights when you were a flight attendant. So I'm sure that there's a difference with that compared to domestic flights and wide bodies and narrow bodies.
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B
Yeah, for sure. Delta, at least everybody starts out with a mix of domestic and international flying. Now a lot of the junior flight attendants can't hold the more coveted, you know, international destinations. The opportunity arises when you're on what Delta calls eight days, which is our. Which is, you know, access days basically when you're on call. So a lot of the international flying I did as a junior flight attendant I was on call, you know, and got just slotted in to flight unexpectedly. But it was exciting, you know. But yeah, no, Istanbul always meant very senior. It was, you know, you would see a lot of the area code flight attendants, which means their seniority number was three numbers as opposed to. Yeah, an area code. I think it's an address. And then I was always a zip code which is five digits. I never made it to an address, address level. But anyways, I, I could have non revved. I didn't take advantage of that. I wish I would have Istanbul and Athens are, and then maybe Australia too are some of the places that I feel like man, I really should have non revved there. I non revved several other places. But anyways, I digress.
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A
Yeah, it's funny that you mentioned the seniority because I saw on TikTok I think it's the flight attendant who holds the number three spot in seniority and I believe she's in her 80s. But what does that fall under? Is that address two? Because there's this one number.
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B
That's hilarious. No, I have no idea. That's winning, you know.
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A
Yeah. There you go.
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B
I used to see actually one of the most. I was based in LA for a few years and I used to see one of the most senior flight attendants in the system. Every now and then I'd see her in the lounge. Of course we weren't flying the same trips. She was probably flying Australia, but she was teeny tiny and she looked phenomenal and she was still a great flight attendant. But she was definitely in her 70s. Yeah. I was lucky enough to fly with some of the Pan Am original flight. Wow. And you know, the reason people don't want to retire is it gets in your blood, becomes a part of your lifestyle and then at that point you're holding and dropping whatever you want, you know. So you have the cream of the crop there in terms of trips. But yeah, it does questionable sometimes. Like would you be able to do your job duties? Let's hope so if there was an emergency, you know.
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A
Right. Yeah. Sounds like they are those ultra senior flight assistants.
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B
Senior mamas.
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A
Yeah. Icons and queens, for sure. Yeah, definitely. Yeah. That's a great story there. And we're going to move on to our final story for this week's podcast. And Jennifer, did you hear about it, the closure in El Paso?
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B
And explain this to me because this made national news and was all over. So I'm excited to learn more about what happened in Texas, specifically at El Paso.
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A
Yeah, yeah. A lot of chaos here and we're still learning exactly what led up and what caused the Federal Aviation Administration to do this. They briefly shut down the airspace over El Paso, Texas late on Tuesday for 10 days. That was a sudd decision that surprised local officials and disrupted travelers and alarmed many others. The restrictions were lifted less than eight hours later. But much, as I said, remains unclear about why officials abruptly shut down a major regional airport and airspace for more than a week. Trump administration officials have said Mexican cartel drones breached US Airspace, but others are disputing that explanation. So basically looking at the timeline of how all of this went down, at 11:30pm local time, the FAA halted all flights to and from El Paso International Airport, as I mentioned, for 10 days. They cited, quote, special security reasons. Now, that restriction encompassed a 10 mile area around El Paso and included the neighboring community of Santa Teresa, New Mexico, but did not apply to planes flying above 18,000ft. So for a lot of those planes that are at their cr Cruising altitude flying over El Paso. It didn't apply to those flights, but any flight that was coming into that airspace, the airlines were working on canceling those flights. The notices did not detail the security reasons that prompted the restriction, but in one notice, the FAA said that the federal government may, quote, use deadly force if an aircraft violating the airspace was determined to pose quote, an immediate security threat. And that comes from the New York Times. Now, as I mentioned, the shutdown, it caught travelers, local officials, everyone off guard. And El Paso ended up posting that notice on their Instagram alerting passengers that be prepared for flight cancellations because we were just told that we're gonna be closed for 10 days. Now, as I mentioned, the Trump administration, they blamed a drug cartel drone for the reasoning of this. Transportation Secretary, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on social media that the faa, which is an agency within the Department of Transportation and the Defense Department, quote, acted quickly to address a cartel drone incursion. Now, federal agencies have largely stayed quiet on the closure, and again, we haven't really been getting any other answers in terms of where those drones were, exactly what happened, how long they were existing in that airspace. But as I mentioned, others are kind of saying that there's more to the story and that that explanation is not enough. Multiple people briefed on the situation said the abrupt airspace closure was prompted by US Customs and Border Protection officials deploying an anti drone laser in the area without giving aviation officials enough time to assess the risks to commerc commercial planes. I saw on social media as well, which is definitely not verified, but I was seeing that there might have been reports of a weather balloon in the area and that's what caused the FAA to act in that way. Again, there's a lot of questions around this, but as I mentioned, it did impact travelers, even though it was only in place for eight hours out of the the 10 days that was expected. There were travelers that were definitely impacted by this. And actually I have a friend of mine who just was in the wrong place at the wrong time, had a flight out of El Paso, it got canceled. And then the flights, you know, that, that grounding got lifted, if you will, or the closure got lifted and then everyone was trying to rebook their flights. They could not find any flights because it was all booked. So then they ended up, they needed to get back to Southern California. So they drove in their car, they rented a car and they drove. Also worth mentioning that Southwest is the largest carrier at El Paso and it was the main carrier that was affected by this. But can you Imagine that. It's incredible to see something like this major international airport. Again, it was only in place for eight hours, but the ripple effect that that creates on the operation and airlines and passengers, just insane.
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B
Yeah. You know, and it's like nobody wants to be inconvenienced. Right. And, you know, not be able to make their destinations or nobody wants their flight plans to be disrupted. Obviously, even crew members don't enjoy when that happens. But I always take the chance, I think, when I'm on the podcast to remind everybody that the important thing in aviation is safety. So we have to assume that regardless of what it was, the FAA was
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A
on top of it, at least.
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B
Yeah, exactly. And acting with the highest level safety protocols in mind. And I think it's important to remember in commercial aviation, kind of going back to the first story that we talked about, Starlink. Yes, it's nice to have all the amenities, to have all the access, but again, at the end of the day, safety, and that's the number one priority, and it should stay that way.
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A
Yeah, absolutely. Better safe than sorry, that's for sure. And I know for someone who's been a flight attendant, has worked in the industry, wouldn't you also agree that with the benefits of Starlink, at the end of the day, the airline is focused on getting passengers from A to B, Right? Yeah. So the safety there is so, so important in terms of the airline's main initiative and goal, which is to transport passengers. So. Yes, very interesting. And, you know, one thing about this industry is that there's never a dull moment here. So true, you know, but absolutely true. Yeah, it's good that we're reporting on something that's, you know, again, better safe than sorry. And we didn't have any, any tragedies or any, anything else of that matter with this. So that is going to do it for today's podcast. We hope you enjoyed it and we welcome any feedback that you might have@editorialimplifying.com and for more great content, you can visit our website@simpleflying.com or visit us on social media. Simply search for Simple Flying.
- [33:05]
B
If you enjoyed this podcast, please leave us a rating on your favorite podcast player. Thanks for listening.