Elon Musk's Starlink is becoming an in-flight must-have. I tried it on Qatar Airways, and it's a game changer.

Elon Musk's Starlink is evolving from a niche perk to a necessity for precocious fliers.

The task capitalist Jason Calacanis said he chooses flights based connected whether they connection Starlink, sloppy of value aliases travel length. Rick Ross said he spent $700,000 putting it connected his backstage jet. And successful the first net telephone aft its IPO, SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said 1 hose reported immoderate customers were choosing unnecessary layovers to guarantee they were connected a flight pinch Starlink.

Back successful October 2024, Business Insider was invited to effort it retired connected Qatar Airways' first formation featuring the high-speed WiFi service.

At the time, conscionable 8 airlines had announced deals to instal Starlink. Nearly 2 years later, another 35 airlines person followed suit, including American Airlines, Emirates, and Southwest Airlines.

It will return years for them to person all installed Starlink crossed their fleets, pinch timelines varying owed to the complications of taking airplanes retired of work for installation.

But pinch relationship speeds amended than galore location broadband services, fto unsocial different in-flight net providers, Starlink is becoming a must-have for airlines.

Qatar Airways' first formation pinch Starlink

Approaching the gross astatine Doha's Hamad International Airport, animated archways celebrated the caller partnership. On board, a promotional video followed the information briefing, and Starlink cupcakes were handed retired to passengers.

Having connected to the airline's regular WiFi work connected different formation the time before, I was impressed that my telephone automatically connected connected the Starlink flight.

Even if it were your first clip flying pinch Qatar, you would only person to prime the "OryxComms" WiFi web without the fuss of entering your email aliases paying for access.

One of the formation attendants I said to during the formation said this could trim their workload, arsenic location would beryllium less passengers asking for thief connecting aliases complaining astir the spotty connection.

I was flying successful the QSuite business class for this media event, but Starlink WiFi is free for passengers successful each cabin.

On my formation from London to Qatar pinch the aforesaid airline, I paid $10 for in-flight WiFi, which typically had a download velocity of astir 5 megabits per second. I could watch immoderate YouTube videos successful 360p and watercourse music, but I had to beryllium diligent pinch buffering.

By contrast, the Starlink WiFi was arsenic precocious arsenic 215 megabits — faster than astir location net speeds. However, I saw it dip arsenic debased arsenic 11 Mbps arsenic we flew complete the Black Sea, earlier returning to 3 figures complete cardinal Europe.

I managed to drawback up pinch my favourite quiz show, "University Challenge," watching it successful precocious meaning pinch nary buffering, positive I could watercourse euphony without a hitch.

Several influencers and YouTubers were connected committee the motorboat flight, too, and I saw them livestream connected Instagram from the air.

However, I deliberation business travelers would astir admit the benefits of speedy in-flight internet. Crucially, there's almost nary downtime arsenic Starlink operates gate-to-gate, while modular in-flight WiFi is only activated astatine cruising altitude.

I didn't person immoderate activity meetings scheduled, but I did video telephone respective group connected WhatsApp, starting pinch a chap journalist, Simple Flying's Tom Boon, who was besides connected the flight. I besides called my parents and my friend Thom, who was astatine location successful westbound London. He said the video value looked conscionable arsenic bully arsenic connected the ground.

However, galore airlines won't fto you make calls pinch Starlink, including United Airlines and Lufthansa.

Even so, the reliability of the relationship still makes it a crippled changer — particularly for businesspeople who request to support up to day pinch what's happening connected the ground.

That's particularly notable fixed that Qatar prides itself connected its business-class offering, named the world's champion by Skytrax.

Some executives laud private jets for the clip saved during boarding, positive amended WiFi services, but Starlink's apical connectivity should make commercialized flights almost arsenic appealing, peculiarly arsenic it rolls retired crossed much and much airlines.

At 36,000 feet supra the Persian Gulf, I was capable to constitute and record a communicative astir the arena for Business Insider pinch nary problems — thing I hadn't been capable to execute pinch mediocre WiFi connected a erstwhile train ride.

It did mean location was obscurity to hide erstwhile colleagues and my editor messaged maine pinch activity queries, highlighting what whitethorn beryllium seen arsenic the antagonistic broadside of amended connectivity.

Thanks to their usually erratic WiFi, planes are possibly 1 of the past bunkers to support distant from work, decompress, and hide astir the world outside. Consider, for example, the whimsical TikTok inclination of "raw-dogging" flights — flying without immoderate in-flight entertainment.

That's overmuch little apt if you tin easy scroll Twitter aliases Instagram connected your phone — aliases beryllium invited to subordinate a Zoom meeting.

Editor's Note: This communicative was primitively published successful October 2024. It was updated successful August 2026.