Qatar Airways Starlink fleet hits 150 with world-first 787-9

Qatar Airways has reached a significant milestone with 150 widebody aircraft now equipped with Starlink satellite Internet. The carrier proudly claims it as the first airline globally to have the Boeing 787-9 fitted with the service. This accomplishment follows the successful completion of the Starlink retrofit across the entire Boeing 787-8 sub-fleet within seven months.

The airline's efforts now shift focus to the Boeing 787-9, the larger variant of the Dreamliner. The accomplishment represents the culmination of three retrofit programs conducted during scheduled maintenance, each exceeding the previous timeline.

In addition to the 787 fleet, Qatar Airways now operates the world's first and largest Starlink-equipped Boeing 777 and Airbus A350 fleets, each completed in nine and eight months respectively. Up to 323 Starlink-enabled flights depart daily, making high-speed onboard connectivity a standard feature on the airline's network rather than a limited service on selected routes. Since the service launched in October 2024, over 23 million passengers have connected across more than 86,000 Qatar Airways flights.

The program, heralded as the fastest and most ambitious Starlink widebody installation in aviation history, has progressed to 83% completion, leaving roughly one aircraft in six still awaiting the installation. Qatar Airways' ambitious endeavor has set a new standard for high-speed connectivity in the aviation industry.