Contactless inflight entertainment on Qatar Airways

Qatar Airways has unveiled its state of the art “Zero-Touch technology” in collaboration with the Thales Avant IFE system. Contactless technology has been evolving rapidly over the last 12 months in an effort to curb the spread of the Covid 19 virus on surfaces. The upgrade to the inflight entertainment system will debut on the airline’s Airbus A350 aircraft.

The technology works by allowing passengers to scan a QR-code when they have boarded the aircraft. After connecting to the onboard WiFi, passengers will be able to control their in-seat system via their smartphone or tablet. There will also be an option to pair personal Bluetooth enabled headphones with the seat-back inflight entertainment system across all cabins on the airlines Boeing 787-9 aircraft.

Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker said: “As an industry leader in the fight against Covid-19, Qatar Airways is committed to ensuring the highest standards of safety and hygiene on board its aircraft at all times.

“The introduction of the state-of-the-art 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.”

The airline has not yet revealed the exact date that the new technological innovations will debut on their aircraft.