SpaceX's Starlink internet flies on a Boeing 777 jet for the 1st time

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Starlink provided internet service on a Qatar Airways flight today (Oct. 22) from Doha to London.

Starlink satellites before deployment.
A batch of Starlink internet satellites before their deployment into low Earth orbit. (Image credit: SpaceX)

SpaceX's Starlink internet service continues to make inroads around the globe.

Starlink provided Wi-Fi on a Boeing 777 jet for the first time today (Oct. 22), during a Qatar Airways flight from the Qatari capital of Doha to London.

The 777 is the "largest and longest-range passenger aircraft equipped with Starlink to date," SpaceX representatives said in an emailed statement today.

Qatar Airways marked the milestone with a press release that was sent down to Earth during the flight using Starlink. According the release, the airline will equip its entire 777 fleet with Starlink service — which will be free for passengers — in 2025.

Related: Starlink satellites: Facts, tracking and impact on astronomy

Qatar Airways also posted on YouTube a video call that its CEO, Badr Mohammed Al Meer, held with SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk during the flight, again using Starlink service. 

The Doha-based carrier isn't the only airline that has signed a Starlink service contract: SpaceX has also inked deals with United Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and airBaltic, among others.

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SpaceX currently operates more than 6,400 Starlink satellites in low Earth orbit. That's an impressive number to be sure, but it's bound to keep growing; the megaconstellation could eventually swell to 40,000 or so.

"This is the minimum, and it only gets better from here," Musk said during Monday's video call with Al Meer.

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Mike Wall
Mike Wall
Senior Space Writer

Michael Wall is a Senior Space Writer with Space.com and joined the team in 2010. He primarily covers exoplanets, spaceflight and military space, but has been known to dabble in the space art beat. His book about the search for alien life, "Out There," was published on Nov. 13, 2018. Before becoming a science writer, Michael worked as a herpetologist and wildlife biologist. He has a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Sydney, Australia, a bachelor's degree from the University of Arizona, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Michael on Twitter.