SpaceX Will get Pentagon Ukraine Starlink Contract

Authored by Dave DeCamp by way of AntiWar.com,

The Pentagon acknowledged Thursday acknowledged it’s awarded a contract to Elon Musk’s SpaceX to ship Starlink satellite tv for pc television for laptop computer internet terminals to Ukraine.

„Satellite tv for pc communications represent a priceless layer in Ukraine’s common communications neighborhood and the division contracts with Starlink for providers of this type,” the Pentagon acknowledged in an announcement to CNBC.

The Pentagon refused to half any particulars referring to the contract, and it’s now not specific what variety of terminals will likely be bought. „For operational security causes and on account of the extreme nature of those techniques — we end now not have additional recordsdata referring to bid capabilities, contracts or companions to keep up proper this second,” the Pentagon acknowledged.

SpaceX began delivery lots of of Starlink terminals to Ukraine quickly after the Russian invasion, and the ranking service is presupposed to had been priceless for Ukraine’s struggle effort, each for verbal substitute and serving to with centered on.

Earlier this yr, the president of SpaceX, Gwynne Shotwell, acknowledged the Starlink terminals have been by no method presupposed to be „weaponized,” regarding experiences of Ukraine the utilization of Starlink to compose centered on data with drones. Shotwell acknowledged that SpaceX took steps to „prohibit” Ukraine’s capability to make expend of the ranking service in that machine. 

She had outlined February of this year–

„On the other hand, Ukrainians have leveraged it in techniques that have been unintended and now not allotment of any settlement,” she acknowledged.

Speaking later with journalists, Shotwell referred to experiences that the Ukrainian navy had aged the Starlink service to manipulate drones. Ukraine has made environment friendly expend of unmanned plane for recognizing enemy positions, centered on long-vary fires and shedding bombs.

„There are points that we will end to limit their capability to complete that,” she acknowledged, regarding Starlink’s expend with drones. „There are points that we will end, and have accomplished.”

The US Firm for World Mannequin (USAID) acknowledged it turned as soon as cooperating with SpaceX to amass Starlink terminals to Ukraine within the early days of the struggle. Closing drop, Musk acknowledged that SpaceX couldn’t proceed paying for the service for Ukraine and requested the Pentagon to foot the invoice.

As of October 2022, SpaceX donated 20,000 terminals to Ukraine. Musk acknowledged on the time that it worth his agency „$80 million and might nicely nicely moreover exceed $100 million by the top of the yr.”