Bits: Qatar Airways completes Starlink 777 roll-out, get double Avios with Club Avolta

News in brief:

Qatar Airways completes Starlink roll-out on 777 fleet

Whilst we wait for Virgin Atlantic to start its rollout of Starlink high speed wi-fi in late 2026, Qatar Airways has announced that its entire Boeing 777 fleet of 54 aircraft is now equipped.

This is an important moment, because up to this week you could not be 100% sure that a Boeing 777 aircraft you were booked on would have it. You can now book with confidence, subject to any equipment swaps.

We say in our articles that 200 mbps is possible, because this is what we had when we flew down to Doha recently, but Qatar Airways claims that 500 mbps can be achieved.

(Whilst Virgin Atlantic is starting its rollout next year, it will be 2028 before you can be 100% certain that your aircraft will have it. It’s worth noting that Qatar Airways claims that, by the end of the process, it had cut the installation time down to under 10 hours.)

Qatar Airways is now moving on to its A350 fleet. When Rhys and I were in Doha in May we saw the first A350 being equipped, although this was going to be a test installation used to get Starlink certified.

Qatar Airways says its 58 A350s will get it over the course of “the next year.” You can read about our experience with the service on Qatar’s 777 earlier this year here.

Earn double Avios with Club Avolta

Club Avolta is the loyalty programme for the Avolta duty free empire.

We explained how Club Avolta works in this article.

One key point is that you earn Avios when making purchases at Club Avolta-run outlets, including World Duty Free, at London Heathrow and key airports in Spain.

Until 31st August, the Avios rate is doubled to 2 Avios per £1 or €1 spent when you spend at least £50 or €50.

The introductory offer of 250 Avios for your first purchase in Heathrow or Spain is also still running and will double up with this promotion.

To earn Avios you need to add your British Airways Club or Iberia Club number in the Club Avolta app. You’ll find this under ‘Account’ and then ‘Explore partners’. Further details are in this HfP article on Club Avolta.

No registration is required for the double Avios offer.

Thanks to Amanda for flagging.