Starlink Satellite system by Elon Musk gives Ukrainian forces an edge in the drone warfare. Meanwhile, Ukraine fights back with technology in order to locate invading Russians.
Aerorozvidka, or Aerial Reconnaissance is used to target Russian drones as well as Vladmir Putin’s tank army and to track their position in conflict. This has been going on since February 24, according The Telegraph.
The new Starlink is available to drones in Ukraine. This allows them to stay connected to the internet, and to provide intelligence during power and internet outages.
The new Starlink is now available to drones in Ukraine. This allows them to stay connected to the internet, and to provide intelligence during power and internet outages.
This technology allows drones to be programmed to drop anti tank munitions in order to fend off a Russian attack
This technology allows drones to drop anti tank munitions in order to fend off an attack by Russia.
Musk, who made a bold challenge to Vladimir Putin this week to fight for Ukraine’s future by challenging him to make a stand on the implementation of satellites in the defense of war-torn nations, was successful with the realization of a Musk promise. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier in the month, that SpaceX will send more Starlink satellite stations to provide internet to some of the country’s stricken cities.
Musk was 50 when the president of Ukraine thanked him for his support and invited him to come to Ukraine after the war has ended.
“Talked to @elonmusk. He has been a great supporter of Ukraine, both in words and actions. Zelensky said that we will be receiving another shipment of Starlink system for cities damaged next week.
Ukrainians also enlist the assistance of PD-1 unmanned aircraft vehicles equipped with infrared sensor. The vehicles have a 10ft wingspan and are used for vital information about the movement of Russian troops.
A ‘Delta” system is used by the Ukrainian drone unit. This has been developed with Western assistance in recent years.
You can access it with basic laptops. It also has an’situational awareness software’ that creates an interactive map by using images from satellites and drones. This allows you to track the enemy and build a physical picture.
It is thought that the system was tested during the Sea Breeze military exercise in the Black Sea, 2021. This involved 30 countries, including the USA and Ukraine.
The Ukrainian’s created the system using the aid of Western nations, which have given radio communications that are superior to Soviet-era technology. To protect themselves against Russian hacking, the US spent millions on this system.
Within days of Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s vice-prime minister’s tweet, trucks arrived at Ukraine hauling Starlink terminals (pictured a terminal in Odesa, southern Ukraine)
There are concerns that internet disruptions could cause system damage as Russia’s ongoing assault continues. This may lead to outages of power and connectivity.
Starlink however, is now Ukraine’s most downloaded app with over 100,000 downloads within a matter of weeks. The terminals look similar to TV dishes and are equipped with an antenna that has so far resolved those issues. To allow Ukrainen citizens to have access to the Internet through satellite, mounted on their roofs
Ukraine has so far received thousands of antennas from Musk’s companies and European allies, which the country’s minister of digital transformation, Mykhailo Fedorov, saying the tech has already proved ‘very effective,’ in an interview with The Washington Post Friday.
Fedorov, 31 years old, said the following: “The link quality is outstanding.” He was speaking to the paper in remote interview via Starlink.
‘We are using thousands, in the area of thousands, of terminals with new shipments arriving every other day,’ the official revealed, speaking on how the satellites have proved instrumental in helping citizens and leaders communicate as the Kremlin continues its large-scale attacks in cities across Ukraine.
Fedorov (also serving as vice-prime Minister of the country) sent Musk a Tweet asking for Starlink access shortly after the invasion.
Musk immediately responded hours later with: “Starlink is now operational in Ukraine. More terminals en route.’
In just days, Ukrainian trucks brought Starlink terminals and adapters via car cigarette lighters or batteries to power the devices. There was also a roaming option to make sure people stay connected as they travel from safety to safety.
Starlink utilizes thousands upon thousands of tiny satellites located around 340 miles from the Earth’s surface.
Radio waves are sent up from base stations around the earth to satellites. These satellites then beam them down to a dish terminal on the ground.
Its purpose is to provide internet access in rural areas and other parts that are not well connected. The system allows internet access to move quickly and with greater speed due to the travel through space.
Starlink has a lower orbit which allows signals to travel much faster.
There have been more than 2000 satellites sent into space and plans are to send around 12,000.
Its usefulness has been extended to military operations. The Ukrainian drone armies of “Aerorozvidka” can use the system to communicate with bases via Starlink terminals, and to access ground stations in neighbouring countries like Poland.
The Aerorozvidka unit was formed by a group of civilian model airplane enthusiasts and those with a background in engineering in 2014 following the outbreak of war in eastern Ukraine.
It helped build sensors and drones for military surveillance at the frontier, as well as adapting commercially-available drones to obtain intelligence or drop explosives.
Musk (pictured), delivered terminals for satellite internet after Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation requested them.
More than 2,000 satellites are already in space, with plans for around 12,000 more.
The system eventually became part of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
This is so successful that the US has decided not to supply the Ukrainians an aircraft. They will instead send Switchblades (also known as kamikaze drons) which are originally intended for special forces and have the capability to down a tank.
General James Dickinson from US Space Command stated to the Senate armed service committee that he saw with Elon Musk and Starlink the potential of a megaconstellation (or a proliferation architecture) in terms of capability and redundancy.
However, the Russians reacted furiously to Starlink’s support of Ukraine.
Dmitry Rogozin is Roscosmos’ director general. He said, “This is the West that should we never trust.”
Elon Musk arrives with Starlink, which had been declared as civilian before Russia implemented its highest national interest on Ukraine’s territory.
I warned of it but my’muskophiles said he is world cosmonautics’. He has chosen to be on the right side.
USA has sent Switchblades, also known as kamikaze drones, to Ukraine. These were originally designed for US Special Forces and are capable of taking down tanks.
Photos of the Russian BM-21 Uragan MLRS9P140 launcher and Tigr–M tanks, as well as a T72B3 tank, near Pryluky, Chernihiv Oblast in Ukraine
The drones were instrumental in securing Russian equipment during its journey into Ukraine.
A ‘Delta” system is used by the Ukrainian drone unit. This has been developed with Western assistance in recent years.
Experts say Starlink’s use as an interface between citizens and government during the invasion is a significant test for this relatively new technology and may have long-lasting implications for future conflict.
Aside from powering weapons and aiding the military, Musk’s satellites have so far allowed citizens to stay informed against an enemy known for their misinformation efforts.
Last week, the Ministry of Defence of Britain warned that Moscow was ‘probably’ targeting Ukraine’s communication infrastructure.
Russia is threatening its journalists to be imprisoned if they publish fake news related to the conflict, despite multiple attempts by Putin’s military forces to deconnect Ukrainians.
Russian forces used their hypersonic weapons to some extent, and this week unleashed its Kinzhal hypersonic rockets in Ukraine for the first-time.
Russia never admitted to using this high-precision weapon during combat. State news agency RIA Novosti stated that it was the first time the Kinzhal hypersonic guns were used in conflict with pro-Western Ukraine.
Moscow asserts that the “Kinzhal” (or Dagger) is unstoppable by Western weapons. It is capable of carrying nuclear weapons and has a range up to 1,250 miles. The strike was conventional.
Russian military claims that aerial footage shows the attack. The footage shows large, tall buildings in snowy areas before they are destroyed by an explosion that sends flames, earth, and debris high up into the sky. As smoke rises from the scene, people can be seen fleeing on the ground.
Yuri Ignat, spokesperson for the Ukrainian Air Force confirmed that a storage facility had been attacked but said that Kyiv did not have any information about what type of missile was being used.
Russia reportedly tried the weapon out for the first times in 2016 during its war in Syria, but it wasn’t clear if that was the same weapon. It was during the Battle for Aleppo that the bombing became the most severe, leading to hundreds of civilian casualties.
Pictured: A video screen grab showing a Kinzhal hypersonic cruise missile, launched during a strategic deterrence exercise by the Russian armed forces, in February 2022 (file photo)
Ukrainian forces destroy a Russian tank
Russian President Vladimir Putin called the missile “an ideal weapon” that can fly at 10 times sound speed and overcome air-defence system.
Hypersonic weapons can also be used to launch conventional warheads faster and more precisely than other types of missiles. Their ability to launch nuclear weapons may increase the threat to a country, increasing the likelihood of an international conflict.
The missile strike was announced by Russia just as Kyiv’s military high command said that it had killed five Russian generals since the start of the conflict in Ukraine.
Andrey Mordvichev Lieutenant General, was Vladimir Putin’s senior commander. He was responsible for the 8th All-Military Army in the Kremlin’s vast Southern Military District.
Moscow initially did not confirm his death, as was the case with all previous claims about the ‘liquidation’ of Generals.
Ukraine claims that five soldiers holding the rank General have been killed. They also said that the wounded Russian soldiers were able to fill all Gomel City’s hospital beds in Belarus.
Zelensky stated that Russian forces have been blocking the largest cities of his country to force the people into submission. However, he cautioned Saturday that this strategy would fail, and Moscow will ultimately lose if the war continues.
After being destroyed in Russian bombardment, a heavily bombed building can be seen in Mariupol (Ukraine).
A blast was witnessed in an apartment after the Russian-led tank fires at Mariupol (Ukraine).
Zelenskyy charged the Kremlin with deliberately creating “a humanitarian disaster” and asked for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting. Putin used a massive Moscow stadium rally to praise Russian forces, illustrating what was at stake.
“Imagine yourself in the stadium of Moscow where there are 14,000 bodies, and many thousands more wounded and maimed. In a video address that Zelenskyy gave to the nation, Zelenskyy stated that these were the Russian expenses throughout the invasion. The address was recorded at the Kyiv presidential office.
The rally took place as Russia has faced heavier-than-expected losses on the battlefield and increasingly authoritarian rule at home. There were suspicions that the event was orchestrated by the Kremlin to show patriotism. Thousands of protestors against Russia’s invasion in Ukraine have been detained by Russian police.
The fighting in Ukraine continued on many fronts. The site of much of the worst suffering was Mariupol in the port city under siege.