The key facts

  • The commander of a company of the 18th Combined Arms Army reported a reduction in Ukrainian Armed Forces drone overflights after Starlink speeds were restricted
  • The Economist, citing sources, wrote that Musk ordered Starshield restrictions in response to strikes on Russian oil refineries
  • Musk stated that Ukraine used civilian Starlink for strikes and violated the terms of use of the system

Reduction in drone overflights

The number of overflights by Ukrainian Armed Forces drones has decreased in one of the districts of Kherson region after Starlink's operation was restricted. This was reported by the commander of an engineer-sapper company of the 18th Combined Arms Army, with the call sign Bars, in an interview with TASS, as relayed by Gazeta.Ru. According to him, in the company's area of responsibility the Ukrainian Armed Forces mainly use fixed-wing drones, in particular the D4 'Baton', 'Hornet' and Darts. 'All the operation of these drones goes through the Starlink system; recently, however, their speed was restricted — there are now far fewer overflights, but they are still present,' TASS quoted Bars as saying.

Reports of the Starshield restriction and Musk's reaction

On October 23 the Economist, citing sources, reported that entrepreneur Elon Musk had ordered the restriction of the military Starlink package known as Starshieldin order to punish Ukraine for strikes on Russian oil refineries. Subsequently Musk wrote on the social network X that Ukraine had used civilian Starlink to carry out strikes on Russia and thereby violated the terms of use of the system. According to him, 'that loophole was closed last week.' Earlier, Musk also accused Ukrainian elites of enriching themselves at the expense of Western aid.

Context and data limitations

The information cited comes from one side of the conflict: the serviceman's statement about a reduction in drone overflights has not been confirmed by independent data, and the motives for restricting Starlink are presented differently — the Economist, citing sources, links the decision to strikes on oil refineries, whereas Musk himself speaks of a violation of the terms of use of the system. The editorial team cannot verify these versions from the available publications. The event is significant because the Ukrainian side's access to satellite communications directly affects the intensity of drone use, as evidenced by the serviceman's statement cited; a practical consequence for residents of border districts of Kherson region could be a change in the situation, although the scale of the effect remains unknown.