Elon Musk Predicted Trouble For Delta Over SpaceX Starlink Snub: CEO Ed Bastian Says Airline Is Playing ‘Long Game’

Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE:DAL) CEO Ed Bastian defended the airline’s decision to snub Space Exploration Technologies Corp.‘s (NASDAQ:SPCX) Starlink internet service in favor of Amazon.com Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Leo despite criticism from billionaire Elon Musk.

Delta Is ‘Very Confident’ About Leo

In an interview with Bloomberg on Thursday, Bastian defended the Amazon partnership decision. “We first launched global free fast Wi-Fi five years ago. I remember when we did, the industry was all in arms. How can Delta do that? We’re going to have to copy it now,” Bastian said.

He added that Delta had a “different business model” than competitors and that it was playing the “long game” with its partnerships.

“We know the Amazon Leo product is going to be a great product” and that it was “coming to the skies here relatively soon, over the next 18 months,” he said. Bastian reaffirmed that Delta was “very confident in our decision.” Delta will begin the rollout of the service in 2028.

Elon Musk Vs Delta

The comments come as Musk has mocked Delta’s in-flight Wi-Fi and connectivity woes on several occasions, suggesting that AI models could be sandboxed on Delta flights because of its lack of connectivity.

He had also previously warned that Delta will lose customers due to its lack of Starlink and that CEO Bastian could also lose his job amid the Amazon Leo partnership.

Notably, United Airlines Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) has chosen to offer Starlink connectivity on its flights, with CEO Scott Kirby saying that the airline is seeing a positive response to the service on its flights.

Price Action: DAL shares were up 0.06% to $86.60 during overnight trading on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Check out more of Benzinga’s Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.

Photo courtesy: Shutterstock