Qantas to upgrade 737s

QANTAS will refurbish its fleet of 67 Boeing 737-800 aircraft as part of a multi-million-dollar upgrade.

QANTAS will refurbish its fleet of 67 Boeing 737-800 aircraft as part of a multi-million-dollar upgrade aimed at improving comfort and providing better ­access to entertainment options.

The interior upgrade is scheduled to begin in mid-2015 and take a year.

It comes as Qantas introduces a wider campaign to significantly upgrade the way it entertains passengers and communicates through technology.

The airline launched the campaign last week with what is believed to be world-first interactive technology as well as upgrades to the number of movies and TV series it shows via its in-flight entertainment system.

The airline also announced it had joined forces with Sky News and Fox Sports to provide more timely news bulletins and additional programming.

“In addition to refreshing the look and feel of the cabin and ­improving seat comfort, some aircraft will also have improvements to in-flight entertainment for customers,’’ Qantas Domestic chief executive Lyell Strambi said.

“Pending approval from Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority, customers will be able to use their portable electronic devices in flight mode throughout the entire flight.’’