Qatar Airways Installs Starlink Wi-Fi Across Entire Boeing 777 Fleet
Qatar Airways has wrapped up its Starlink installation program for all 54 of its Boeing 777s, making it the first airline to offer free high-speed internet via Starlink on a fully equipped widebody fleet.
The Starlink rollout took just nine months and now covers the entire Qatar Airways B777 fleet with the low-orbit satellite service.
Unlike most airline Wi-Fi, which still relies on slower air-to-ground or older satellite networks, Starlink uses a low-earth orbit (LEO) constellation that delivers faster, more stable connections, even over oceans and remote regions.
Why start with the B777?
The B777 is the backbone of Qatar Airways’ long-haul network. These aircraft handle many of the airline’s longest and highest-traffic routes, including Sydney, Melbourne, London, and the US east coast.
There are also practical reasons. The B777 offers a relatively uniform platform for retrofit programs, with more consistent wiring, equipment bays, and antenna placements than some other models in the fleet. In contrast, the Airbus A350 (rumoured to be next in line for Starlink installation) has a different fuselage material made out of carbon fibre-reinforced polymer, which presents unique technical and regulatory challenges when modifying the aircraft's skin to install external antennas. If you recall a certain submarine accident, you might understand why!
Airlines typically prioritise aircraft types that are easier and faster to retrofit at scale. According to Qatar Airways, the process was cut down to under 10 hours per aircraft, allowing them to finish the entire B777 fleet rollout in less than a year, which is pretty impressive. Qantas for example has been talking about fast internet for years and only manages a subpar connection on some flights.
What to expect
Starlink’s onboard experience promises speeds up to 500 Mbps per aircraft (but most likely you'll get between 100-200 Mbps), with free gate-to-gate connectivity for all passengers, including in Economy. That’s a significant step up from legacy systems that often charge for access or throttle bandwidth.
In practice, this means you can stream Netflix or YouTube, make video calls, download files, join remote meetings or play online games with minimal lag—activities that were previously patchy or impossible on most long-haul flights.
Qatar Airways now operates the largest number of widebody aircraft equipped with Starlink anywhere in the world.
