SpaceX lifts 400 km/h drone speed cap after Trump calls Musk

Starshield satellite communications are operating at full speed again for the Ukrainian military, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Writing on Telegram on Friday, October 24, he stated that the system is functioning at the speed required for frontline logistics and defense against jet-powered Shahed drones.

Defense Minister Yevheniy Khmara told RFE/RL that monitoring equipment recorded restored connectivity on assets moving faster than 400 kilometers per hour. This marks the end of a nearly two-week period where satellite links dropped at speeds around 161 kilometers per hour. That limitation prevented drone interceptors and other fast-moving equipment from maintaining stable connections.

The cause of the slowdown remains officially unclear. Serhiy Beskrestnov, a defense technology adviser to the president, linked the restrictions to recent tensions between Kyiv and Washington. However, the Trump administration denies that the U.S. government requested the changes. Elon Musk, whose company SpaceX develops the system, has noted that the government controls Starshield and that military leaders make decisions on speed and use.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that President Donald Trump called Musk to urge him to lift the restrictions. When asked about the report, Trump declined to provide details but said, "if there is a problem, I will get it straightened out." Members of Congress from both parties have requested answers on who authorized the changes and seek guarantees of reliable access for Ukraine.

The restoration follows a period of diplomatic friction. In the past two weeks, Trump announced a deal to encourage Russian diesel exports and waived sanctions under a law he signed last month. He also urged Kyiv to pause attacks on Russian oil refineries. Zelenskyy initially considered a pause but reversed course after Russia continued strikes, declaring Kyiv was "done" with unilateral pauses.

Combat operations continued through the night. Ukrainian air defense forces reported shooting down 100 of 130 Russian drones. Attacks on 15 locations killed at least two people. The Ukrainian General Staff said its forces struck two industrial facilities and a military airport in Russia. One facility in Oryol produces components for cruise and ballistic missiles, while another in Togliatti makes rubber products used in solid rocket fuel.

Most of Russian-occupied Crimea lost power in the early hours of Friday, affecting cities including Simferopol, Sevastopol, Yalta, and Kerch. NetBlocks recorded a near-total loss of internet connectivity. Russian-installed authorities stated that mobile service reached only 40 percent of the area and that water pressure remained low. Sergei Aksyonov, the occupation head, blamed the outage on a drone attack on power lines outside Crimea.

Ukraine has not independently confirmed the cause of the blackouts. Monitoring channels reported a fire at the Taman electrical substation in Russia's Krasnodar region, which supplies Crimea via the Kerch Strait. As a fifth wartime winter approaches, peace talks remain stalled with no concessions from the Kremlin.