Qatar Airways Completes A350 Fleet Starlink Upgrade, Starts 787 Fleet

Starlink has become the satellite internet provider of choice for many carriers over the past few years. With lower latency and very fast download speeds, it’s no surprise that many airlines have jumped ship.

I’ve even given up updating my Starlink article because I feel like at some point in the very near future, the market share will quickly become split between Starlink and Amazon’s Leo (previously Project Kuiper).

In October 2024, Qatar Airways introduced free Starlink Wi-Fi starting via its fleet of Boeing 777s. Launched on a 777-300ER, guests flying on the Middle Eastern airline were easily hitting 200 to 300 Mbps on the download side.

Over the past year and change, they have since covered their entire fleet of 777s and Airbus A350s, with all future A350s also set to feature the high-speed internet service.

With two types out of the way covering over 120 aircraft, they’re now tackling their fleet of Boeing 787s, and have already installed transceivers on three of 32 787-8s, putting the first into commercial service in December 2025.

Credit: ERIC SALARD/Flickr | CC BY-SA 2.0 Generic

According to Qatar, guests should be able to get download speeds as fast as 500 Mbps, but of course, those numbers are very rare. Real world speeds aren’t nearly as close to that, but are still more than fast enough to stream live TV and online content like Twitch and YouTube, and even allow for video calls. I’m not sure if I’m a fan of phone calls on an airplane, but it’s a thing now.

Besides the 787-8 line, they also have 24 Boeing 787-9s online that will be outfitted in due course. They’ve done a pretty quick job wrapping up the 777s and A350s, but the 787 timeline may be a bit slower given that they’re built using full composite barrels rather than panel-based composite segments featured on the A350. As a result, any poor workmanship could result in significant frame compromise.

Qatar’s remaining fleet consists of eight Airbus A380s, 27 A320-200s, six A321neos, five A330-200s and 10 A330-300s. They haven’t commented yet on what they’ll be working on next, but it’s possible neither widebody types may receive the same treatment.

At the 2023 Paris Air Show, Qatar’s then CEO Akbar al Baker noted that they were looking to phase out their A380s starting some time in 2025 once they start accepting deliveries of Airbus A350-1000s.

Since then, they’ve taken on 28 units, with 14 more pending delivery. 2025 has come and gone, and the eight A380s that were online post-COVID are still in service. I suspect with the Boeing 777X deliveries facing numerous delays, the A380s may live on a bit longer, but not long enough to justify to cost of installing Starlink.

As for the A330s, there are just 15 in the fleet and they may not receive Starlink transceivers either as they are slowly being phased out, being replaced by their newer A350s and 787s. There hasn’t been any word yet on the A320 and A321neo family either.

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