Qatar accelerates wi-fi program

Qatar Airways plans to offer SpaceX’s Starlink high-speed, low-latency internet service across its Boeing 777 fleet within a year, followed by the airline’s Airbus A350 fleet. The accelerated installation program — a year ahead of previous plans — comes as the airline launched the Starlink service on its first 777 on October 22, 2024.

In-flight connectivity is nothing new, but Starlink claims its service is a step-up, supporting a high-speed, low-latency gate-to-gate service, including over oceanic and polar regions. Starlink uses a constellation of satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) as opposed to existing in-flight connectivity on long-haul services provided by satellites in geostationary Earth orbit. LEO constellations are closer to Earth, delivering high-speed and low-latency global service. While existing connectivity service providers have long claimed their solutions can deliver high-speed, reliable and consistent services to support in-flight live video streaming, live TV, social media, gaming and shopping, the reality for passengers has often proved expensive and inconsistent.

Unlike Qatar’s existing wi-fi service, provided by Viasat, which passengers can purchase from $US8, Starlink will be free of charge to all passengers in all classes. The airline says with “one-click access”, passengers will be able to stay entertained and connected throughout their flight, streaming their favourite shows and live sports, playing games online, or working, all free of charge.

Qatar launched the service on board a 777 flying from its home base in Doha to London Heathrow. It plans to have 12 777-300s retrofitted by the end of this year, with its entire 777 fleet to be equipped in 2025 and installations on the A350s to start next year.

During the flight, Qatar executives showcased the wi-fi’s speed and reliability, with Qatar Airways Group chief executive officer Badr Mohammed Al-Meer video-calling SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. Qatar Airways’ senior vice-president of product development and design Xia Cai also video-called Joe Leader, CEO of the Airline Passenger Experience Association, reporting download speeds of up to 215Mbps and no lagging.

“Over time you’ll find it just gets better and better. This is the minimum and it only gets better from here,” Mr Musk says.

Qatar is not the first commercial airline to provide Starlink service, but the 777 marks the largest passenger aircraft equipped to date. Hawaiian Airlines started rolling out Starlink service free of charge to its passengers last year.

Numerous airlines are planning the switch to Starlink, including Air France and United Airlines, which both plan to replace their existing connectivity services with free Starlink service. In United’s case, this totals more than 1000 aircraft, operating mainline and regional services, with testing to start in early 2025. Air France will start the rollout across its entire fleet next year.

Air New Zealand will trial Starlink on one domestic jet and an ATR turboprop before the end of this year, with decisions then to be made on equipping its domestic fleet. Onboard its international fleet, Air New Zealand has Viasat service, which it has said could come under review if the Starlink trial proves successful. Japanese carrier Zipair has also opted for Starlink for its Boeing 787s.

While numerous carriers are jumping ship to Starlink, Qantas is equipping its international fleet with GEO-based Viasat connectivity. The airline says fast and free wi-fi will be available on Qantas A330 flights on some Asia routes from December.

If Starlink service is as good as SpaceX claims, this could lead to a whole new raft of in-flight etiquette issues if passengers use their mobile devices in-flight the same way they do on the ground. Who wants to sit on a long-haul flight next to someone constantly conducting video calls or filming and posting their latest TikTok videos? Qatar’s Xia Cai told Mr Leader during the launch flight that Qatar expected passengers to use the service responsibly.

“It is no different from having a conversation with a loved one on the aircraft. If passengers are mindful and use headsets, the background noise makes it almost unnoticeable,” she said. Time will tell.