A shipment of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite antennas, aka terminals, arrive in Ukraine.
Fedorov Mykhailo on Twitter
WASHINGTON — SpaceX has shipped “thousands” of Starlink satellite internet kits to Ukraine, company president Gwynne Shotwell told CNBC on Tuesday.
Elon Musk’s space company began sending shipments of Starlink satellite kits — which come with an antenna, mounting stand and Wi-Fi router — to Ukraine shortly after the Russian invasion. Ukrainians can use the Starlink kits to connect directly to SpaceX’s in-orbit network, which the company has launched about 2,000 satellites to date.
“I am proud that we were able to make the terminals available to the people of Ukraine. I think it’s been tremendously helpful in making sure people are still communicating,” Shotwell said during a panel at the Satellite 2022 conference in Washington, DC
Musk had Starlink terminals shipped to Ukraine after Ukrainian official Mykhailo Fedorov asked the CEO for help amid Russia’s attacks disrupted internet service in the country.
Shotwell, speaking to CNBC after the panel, was not more specific about the number of dishes the company shipped to Ukraine. She added that most of the funding for the Starlink kits comes from private sources, but added that “France helped” and “I think Poland is helping”.
“I don’t think the US gave us money to give terminals to Ukraine,” Shotwell said.
The French and Polish embassies in the US did not immediately respond to CNBC requests for comment.