Zelenskyy says satellite speed restrictions are hampering drone interceptions
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says speed restrictions have returned to Starshield satellite connections and are hindering interceptor drones. His account concerns equipment moving faster than 161 kilometres per hour. Ukraine is discussing the issue with Washington after its defence ministry announced in October that connections at higher speeds had been restored.
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Zelenskyy reports renewed disruption
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that speed restrictions had returned to Starshield, SpaceX’s satellite-connectivity service for military users. He said devices moving faster than 161 kilometres per hour were affected. According to his account, Ukrainian units had experienced disruptions for several days along the front line and in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine. The reported threshold concerns the travelling speed of connected equipment.[1], [2]
Interceptor operations affected, president says
Zelenskyy said he had received briefings from Ukraine’s defence minister, Yevhenii Khmara, and armed forces commander-in-chief Mykhailo Drapatyi. He said the military considered the restrictions systematic. In his account, interceptor drones could not reach sufficient speeds while maintaining connectivity, complicating efforts to stop Russian jet-powered drones. He said some attacks had penetrated the defences as a result. Ukraine was discussing the circumstances with the United States.[1]
October restoration preceded the new account
A similar restriction had been reported in October at roughly 160 kilometres per hour. On 24 October, Ukraine’s defence ministry announced that stable connections above 400 kilometres per hour had been restored. Zelenskyy’s new statement about Starshield described a return of restrictions following that announcement. The origin of the renewed limit remained unclear in the reporting.[1]
