Weak Starlink knocks out Ukraine's drones: 'Useless'

Ukraine's attacks have this year caused major problems for Russia, both at the front and thousands of kilometers behind it. A big reason is the Starlink satellite service and the military version Starshield that the country's forces use to control drones.

But on the night of Wednesday, restrictions were suddenly introduced for Starshield, which means that drones flying faster than 160 kilometers per hour risk losing their internet connection. However, the communication with Starlink is said to work as it should.

US President Donald Trump and Starlink owner Elon Musk maintain that they are innocent, but according to sources to The Telegraph, the men agreed together to reduce the speed of Starshield.

On Saturday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that drones traveling faster than 100 miles per hour still lose connectivity, leaving drone pilots unable to direct them to their targets.

Marco belongs to a drone unit in the Ukrainian army and writes on Saturday that the deterioration of Starshield's performance makes some drones less effective and others completely unusable.

"Some medium-range attack drones become practically useless at lower speeds. They are designed to fly at over 100 miles per hour and the speed cannot be reduced without them crashing. This creates major operational problems for us."

Kiev had received no warning that the speed of Starlink or the military version Starshield would be reduced, and the Ukrainian forces noticed immediately. Zelenskyy stated on Wednesday that several missions had to be canceled because several types of drones suddenly malfunctioned.

According to the president, it is a "planned operation" aimed at Ukraine. Zelenskyy also points out that the restriction only affected Ukraine – in Europe the satellite system works as usual, the Kyiv Independent reports.

"It seems to be a deliberate and targeted action against our medium-range attack drones," agrees Marco, whose military rank is equivalent to sergeant in Sweden.

Both Zelenskyj and other Ukrainian representatives have simultaneously pointed out that Starlink's reduced speed does not only affect Ukrainian attacks. Starlink and Starshield have also been used to disrupt the Russian jet-powered drones that have been terrorizing Ukrainian cities and communities for months.

However, that method does not work with the satellite service's current speed limit, says Zelensky.

Communication between different Ukrainian units has also been affected by the restrictions.

"The internet speed at our position had deteriorated significantly and communication with our headquarters and command had deteriorated significantly," a Ukrainian soldier serving in an artillery unit in eastern Ukraine told Reuters on Wednesday.

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