Starlink “went down” in the Russian army: what is happening

4 February 23:44

On the front lines, Russian occupation forces have reported a massive failure in Starlink satellite communications. According to reports from Russian military publications, terminals have stopped working across the entire front line, causing panic due to the complete dependence of Russian units on this communication channel. Several well-known pro-Russian bloggers and so-called “military correspondents” simultaneously reported communication problems, according to "Komersant Ukrainian".

“Starlink has failed across the entire front. So much for the vaunted American communications… Well, back to alternative communications then. Elon Musk – [expletive],” writes blogger “Thirteenth.”

Blogger Alex Parker Returns described the situation simply: “It’s the end.”

“Starlink has gone down across the entire front.”

Propagandist Vladimir Romanov was one of the first to report on the large-scale failure. According to him, satellite internet disappeared not locally, but systemically.

“Starlink has gone down across the entire front. There is simply no alternative to this satellite internet in the ranks of the Russian Armed Forces, and many things, including combat control, were tied to it and everything was taken for granted,” reads a post from one of the enemy’s military public pages.

Other Russian bloggers described the situation even more emotionally, calling it “the end” for the occupation forces’ communications system.

“Starlink has gone down across the entire front. The enemy’s too,” writes Vladimir Romanov.

His colleague at Z-camp, Kirill Fedorov, notes that in the near future, Ukrainians will switch to “white lists” of terminals allowed to operate, while the Russians “need to come up with something” because “there are no analogues.”

Why this is critical for the Russian army

For a long time, Russian troops have actively used Starlink not only to control strike drones, but also as the main means of tactical and operational communication — to coordinate units, transmit data, and manage combat.

That is why the mass shutdown of terminals immediately exposed a key problem for the Russian army — the lack of viable alternatives to satellite internet.

“There are no analogues yet, but we need to come up with something urgently,” the Russian military itself admits in its reports.

Serhiy Sternenko, an advisor to the Ukrainian Minister of Defense, volunteer, and blogger, predicts major problems for the Russians after the shutdown of “enemy” communications.

“The enemy reports a massive shutdown of Starlink in Russian units on the front lines. If this is indeed the case, the Ukrainian army will regain its communications advantage, and the enemy will face a number of problems with command and control at the tactical level,” he writes.

Have the restrictions affected the Ukrainian military?

Amid the panic in Russian public forums, there have been claims that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have also experienced problems with Starlink. However, most Ukrainian military personnel deny these claims.

A senior lieutenant in the Ukrainian Defense Forces and author of the Telegram channel “Officer” explained that the system is generally working, but temporary interruptions are possible.

“Overall, Starlink is working, but there are occasional interruptions. There are no clear statistics: even some terminals that were submitted for verification have failed, while those that were not submitted continue to work. We are currently registering the dishes and waiting a few days to see how the system stabilizes,” he wrote.

Reason: security restrictions and “white list”

As a reminder, SpaceX, at the request of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, has introduced countermeasures in the operation of the Starlink system in Ukraine.

A key element was the creation of a so-called “white list” — a list of verified and registered terminals that are allowed to operate. All devices not included in this list are subject to blocking.

According to experts, this was the main reason for the mass disconnections in Russian units.

However, unlike their adversaries, Ukrainian users have the opportunity to restore terminal operation through a verification procedure.

How to avoid Starlink blocking?

In order to avoid restrictions, military personnel and security forces who use Starlink in their work must submit their terminal identification numbers through the DELTA system.

Users do not need to place terminals on the official balance sheet of military units. Nor is it necessary to submit confidential account data or passwords.

Thanks to the DELTA system, the network is formed only from verified devices, making it impossible for Russians to use them.