FlyDubai has made an exciting announcement, which will see the airline going from not offering Wi-Fi at all, to offering free, high speed Wi-Fi for everyone. Talk about a nice upgrade!
FlyDubai partnering with Starlink on inflight connectivity
FlyDubai has signed an agreement with SpaceX, to introduce Starlink Wi-Fi. The airline plans to install this service on its entire Boeing 737 fleet, and the installation process will take place throughout 2026. Given how fast Starlink installation is, the airline expects to complete the project in just one year.
Presumably the newly ordered Airbus A321neos will also get Starlink Wi-Fi, but since there’s no firm delivery timeline, there’s not much to share there yet. Meanwhile the Boeing 787-9s on order aren’t mentioned in this announcement, oddly.
Starlink is known for its high-speed, low-latency broadband internet, and the service will be offered gate to gate. Starlink Wi-Fi will allow for live streaming, productivity similar to on the ground (with high upload and download speeds), gaming, e-commerce, and more.
Starlink is becoming increasingly popular with airlines. So far we’ve seen carriers like airBaltic, Air France, Air New Zealand, British Airways, Emirates, Hawaiian Airlines, Iberia, Qatar Airways, SAS, United, Virgin Atlantic, and WestJet, all announce plans to install the service.
Here’s how FlyDubai CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith describes this order:
“We are proud to bring Starlink’s cutting-edge technology to our customers. This agreement marks a major milestone in our ongoing efforts to elevate the travel experience, providing fast, reliable internet access across our growing network. Reliable connectivity has become essential and our partnership with Starlink allows us to meet the evolving expectations of today’s travellers. As we continue to expand our fleet and network, innovation remains at the heart of our strategy.”
This is a huge boost to FlyDubai’s passenger experience
In general, FlyDubai is a pleasant airline to fly with. Arguably one of the biggest downsides to the passenger experience has been how the airline doesn’t offer any sort of inflight connectivity. So to see FlyDubai go from not offering Wi-Fi at all, to offering Starlink Wi-Fi, is a huge upgrade.
When you combine this with FlyDubai’s flat bed seating and seat back entertainment on many of its Boeing 737 MAXs, the airline is potentially quite pleasant to fly with.
Bottom line
FlyDubai is the latest airline to sign an agreement to introduce Starlink. What makes this particularly exciting is that FlyDubai currently doesn’t have any sort of inflight connectivity, so this is about as much of an upgrade as you could possibly see. Between this and the upcoming Dreamliner deliveries, it’s going to be an exciting period for the airline.
What do you make of FlyDubai introducing free Starlink Wi-Fi?
