Qatar Airways is on the verge of completing its fleet-wide installation of Starlink’s high-speed internet on its Boeing 777 aircraft, with just a few jets remaining. This has been a rapid rollout with the carrier beginning the process late last year. In February it announced an accelerated rollout and even that seems to be ahead of schedule.
Once all of the Boeing 777s have been retrofitted with the high-speed internet, Qatar Airways plans to begin retrofitting its Airbus A350 fleet. This will make Qatar the only airline with Starlink equipped A350s.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Officer, Engr. Badr Mohammed Al-Meer, said this about the Starlink rollout progress:
“We are just a few aircraft away from completing a full fleet-wide upgrade of our Boeing 777s with Starlink connectivity—an industry-first for a widebody fleet of this scale. In April, we will become the first airline in the world to begin equipping the Airbus A350 with Starlink, taking another bold step in our journey of redefining connectivity in the skies. We affirm our continual efforts to enhance our onboard WiFi experience, ensuring passengers enjoy greater comfort, convenience, and service.”
Currently, over 80% of Qatar Airways’ Boeing 777 fleet is equipped with Starlink, having completed more than 6,000 global flights with unmatched gate-to-gate connectivity. Qatar Airways touts the fact that it has the fastest Wi-Fi offered by any airline in the MENA region.
I’ve seen plenty of reports across social media of travelers using the new service on retrofitted aircraft. One even claimed that speeds were good enough to do a FaceTime call at 35,000 feet.
While having such fast internet available at your fingers is great for productivity on board, I really hope I don’t start seeing people taking Zoom and Teams calls while traveling. That would certainly put a damper on the QSuites experience.
Have you had a chance to experience Starlink Wi-Fi on Qatar or any other carrier? If so, what was your experience like?
Summary
Qatar Airways us nearing completion of the Starlink upgrade on its Boeing 777 aircraft. Once all 777s have been outfitted with the high-speed Wi-Fi, the carrier will begin upgrading its Airbus A350 fleet. To date, Qatar Airways has flown more than 6,000 flights with Starlink connectivity.
