Delta Air Lines is adding YouTube onboard to its in-flight-entertainment library, a practical upgrade that matches how people like me actually watch videos today.
Delta Adds YouTube And YouTube Premium Access In Flight
Delta has rolled out a new partnership with YouTube that will bring streaming content directly to passengers through both seatback screens and Delta Sync Wi-Fi. The airline says SkyMiles members on equipped flights will also receive a complimentary 14-day trial of YouTube Premium, which includes ad-free viewing, background play, and offline downloads.
At launch, Delta will feature curated YouTube content across its seatback entertainment system, which already includes more than 165,000 screens across 930+ aircraft. On the connectivity side, passengers on domestic flights with Delta Sync Wi-Fi can log in to their SkyMiles account and unlock the YouTube Premium trial without having to enter credit card details.
To be clear, it won’t be like visiting YouTube itself. Instead, there will be programming collections available from many YouTube content creators.
Delta is also expanding its integration with YouTube Music. Boarding music has been updated with a new instrumental playlist designed in partnership with flight attendants. Longer term, the carrier says YouTube will play a role in its next-generation Delta Sync seatback platform, expected to debut in 2026, which will use a cloud-based architecture and allow faster updates to keep content fresh.
My Thoughts
I realize that with free high-speed Wi-Fi, passengers can already access YouTube on their smartphones or computers. Even so, this makes it easier and will include some of YouTube’s biggest starts.
This seems to be a smart move by Delta because it lines up with how people actually consume media. While most airlines still load up their seatback systems with movies and TV shows (and Delta will continue to do this too), YouTube remains the dominant platform for shorter content and music. Offering it onboard in an easily-accessible way makes sense, especially on domestic flights where passengers may not want to commit to a full movie.
Whether it’s music, podcasts, sermons, or shorts, I live on YouTube…I’ve paid for YouTube Premium for years and cannot imagine having to endure ads before videos or not being able to play videos in the background. I have no TV in my house, but I certainly have YouTube on my phones and computers.
I also appreciate that Delta is not hiding this behind an extra paywall. The Premium trial is offered as a perk to SkyMiles members, which is consistent with how Delta has positioned its loyalty program…free Wi-Fi is something that American and United still do not offer.
CONCLUSION
YouTube programming is now available on Delta, both through seatback entertainment and Delta Sync Wi-Fi. With a free Premium trial, passengers will be able to enjoy ad-free YouTube content in the air. It is a logical step for Delta and another example of how the airline continues to invest in inflight entertainment as a differentiator. Other U.S. carriers should take note…YouTube is the future.
image: Delta
United: Spotify, beautiful Polaris product
Delta: YouTube, amazing Delta One(specifically the A350)
American: crappy A321T with old seats, broken IFE, and little privacy(new 78P business class looks good, though)
United: Worst wifi of everyone. Dreams of what’s to come but the worst wifi today. Most domestic planes still have no power in economy. Polaris is nice, but it is the densest business-class product out there in the US
Delta: If you’re booking Delta one for the A350, you’re going to be disappointed (or likely have been with no aisle access and no wifi on their LATAM birds the last few years) to say nothing of their ridiculously subpar 763 business class product. And.. let’s be honest. Wifi that doesn’t work on MANY of their international routes (per their own website)
AA: Lots of problems here but hey, they have high speed wifi across the entire fleet (still the only airline to have it across their entire mainline fleet and it works across the globe on their international routes) and I’ll take an A321T over a DL 763 every day. Little privacy? You don’t ever seem to fly in business class given your remarks.
I know that you love hyperbole but there are precisely TWO ex-Latam A350-900s still in service in their original configuration and they are scheduled to be in mods in weeks.
And DL doesn’t offer SAY that it offers high speed WiFi on its TPAC routes – but it actually does on SOME aircraft. About half of the 40 or so A350s have high speed WiFi but DL just hasn’t turned FREE on.
DL does offer free high speed WiFi on nearly all flights across the Atlantic and to Latin America.
Delta doesn’t overpromise and underdeliver which is why the website is more conservative than what is available in practice.
Thanks for confirming my point.
Delta does not have all aisle access or global wifi unlike aa and ua. In many cases, they have no wifi whatsoever on either the entire plane or geographically.
They seem to brag about it on their own website. https://www.delta.com/us/en/onboard/inflight-entertainment/onboard-wifi
“And DL doesn’t offer SAY that it offers high speed WiFi on its TPAC routes – but it actually does on SOME aircraft. About half of the 40 or so A350s have high speed WiFi but DL just hasn’t turned FREE on.”
Yes. inconsistency was my point despite misleading marketing. Thanks for reaffirming it.
“Delta doesn’t overpromise and underdeliver which is why the website is more conservative than what is available in practice.”
not sure which part of the website you spend your time on, but your average consumer sure isn’t expecting zero wifi to Australia, South Africa, or NZ, though they likely did expect it free. They’re just probably more surprised that it doesn’t exist but does on UA (to all 3) or AA (to Oceania)
Tim, Delta purposefully put planes into service with zero wifi both domestically and internationally with little plan to change that in any near term. It just is what it is. Their product meant that little to them. That just isn’t the case with AA and UA fleets. Delta chose to bring a subpar product and tried to keep it as quiet as possible to their customers. But I’m glad you enjoy that. I realize your life is dedicated to keeping Delta fake marketing supreme. Some of us enjoy noting the glaring inconsistencies of delta marketing.
I’m sorry btw. Who is following who around the internet to reply to them? Seems to be you desperate to reply to me. Get a grip, pal.
I forgot to mention. Delta is happy to say you will not get ANY wifi to basically anywhere in their Asia network. Not the case on AA or UA. But good on you for noting Delta never promises that but sometimes delivers at times, unlike their competitors that do consistently.
Dude, calm down. Every airline has lots of faults. Your attempt to defend glaring Delta deficiencies are just amusing and don’t help your reputation.
you mean, inconsistency like UA’s fleet of 757s that fly flights as long or longer than DL widebodies and do not have direct aisle access?
you mean AA and UA have precisely ZERO mainline aircraft in service that have free high speed global WiFi so the 20 or so DL aircraft that do not offer WiFi are supposed to trump the 900 plus that do?
got it.
Get the log out of your own eye and then we’ll talk about the speck in DL’s.
Cute attempt at a reply, Tim.
And no. Noting 14 hour flights to AKL on Delta with 2-2-2 J class and no wifi. but keep talking about UA 757s if it makes you feel better.
It must be fun to talk about free wifi internationally when Delta doesn’t offer any wifi ANYWHERE across the Pacific or to Africa. AA and UA do. Get new talking points.
All the best.
you desperately want to live in the past so you don’t have to face the reality that exists now.
There are precisely TWO ex-Latam A350s in service; they won’t be used to fly anywhere over the Pacific this winter.
They did come in quite handy for DL to use to start LAX-AKL service a couple years ago, resulting in UA’s departure from that route on its own metal.
Seems to me those planes did their job.
and now one of DL’s new “standard” A350s will be used to start LAX-HKG on top of UA. and MEL starts in mere weeks.
In fact, feel free to tell us how DL has done from LAX TPAC compared to UA, Max. Seems to me that it is UA that has run w/ its tail between its legs from LAX to BNE and AKL
methinks that we won’t see 2 UA flights/day with tags on LAX-HKG in a couple years.
WiFi clearly has had no impact whatsoever on DL’s ability to make UA think twice whether it really wants to fly TPAC routes from LAX that DL wants to serve.
but you live in the past, Max, and nitpick over age old reality since it is far easier than facing current reality.
“I realize that with free high-speed Wi-Fi, passengers can already access YouTube on their smartphones or computers. Even so, this makes it easier”
Does it? I’m trying to think of the last person that said “wow. it’s so much easier to type on the seatback screen vs my phone”?
I don’t think anyone has ever said that
YouTube premium is great. That is the only way Delta can be offered youtube anyways as they would be unable to capitalize on YouTube ads.