Qatar Airways has announced two new IFE upgrades for customers travelling on the carrier’s A350 and B787-9 fleets.

The airline said that it will “soon” offer passengers on A350 services the ability to control the seatback IFE system via their personal device.

The ‘Zero-Touch technology’ has been developed in partnership with the Thales Avant IFE system, and sees passengers able to pair their device with the IFE by connecting to ‘Oryxcomms’ wifi and then scanning a QR code displayed on the screen.

Qatar Airways says it is the first global airlines to offer “100 per cent Touch-Free ‘Zero-Touch’ Inflight Entertainment Technology”, which it says will “limit the frequency of on board surface contact and provide greater peace of mind throughout the duration of their journey”.

Qatar Airways recently passed the milestone of 50 A350 aircraft in its fleet, mixed between the -900 and -1000 variants.

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In addition the airline is to offer passengers on all of its B787-9 aircraft the option to pair their Bluetooth headphones with the seatback IFE system. The pairing technology will be available to customers in both economy and business class.

Commenting on the news the carrier’s Group CEO Akbar Al Baker, said: “

“The introduction of the state-of-the-art Zero-Touch technology, and enabling passengers to use their personal Bluetooth headset on board is an important step in taking our already rigorous and stringent Covid-19 precautions to another level, limiting passenger surface contact and preventing any possible spread of infection on board.

“We hope it provides yet further assurance of the safety of air travel, as well as offering passengers on board increased confidence that they are enjoying the most consistently advanced customer experience available in the sky.”

qatarairways.com