Billionaire Elon Musk ordered the shutdown of Starlink satellite internet over part of Kherson Oblast in the autumn of 2022 during a major counteroffensive operation by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Source: Reuters,

Elon Musk ordered a Starlink communications blackout over parts of Ukraine during a critical 2022 counteroffensive against Russia, leading to a military disaster and preventing soldiers from retaking territory held by Russia.

On September 30, 2022, the Ukrainian army was poised to score a massive military victory against Russia, but reportedly fearing a Russian nuclear retaliation, Elon Musk decided to determine

According to Reuters, Elon Musk halted Starlink service during a Ukrainian counteroffensive as it reclaimed territory from Russia.

A rare global interruption in the Starlink satellite Internet network knocked subscribers offline for more than two hours on Thursday, the longest widespread outage since SpaceX opened the service to consumers nearly five years ago.

Ukraine will become the first European nation to offer Starlink mobile services when leading operator Kyivstar launches messaging by year-end and mobile satellite broadband in mid-2026, Chief Executive Oleksandr Komarov said.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 15, 2022 The effort began in late February, just days after Russia invaded Ukraine. Musk said Starlink terminals were “on the way” but provided little detail.

Starlink is now active in Ukraine, Elon Musk announced after Ukraine’s vice prime minister on Saturday requested the SpaceX billionaire help the embattled country with communication satellites.

We ask you to provide Ukraine with Starlink stations and to address sane Russians to stand. — Mykhailo Fedorov (@FedorovMykhailo) February 26, 2022.

A sudden silence fell over the digital world as Starlink users found themselves disconnected, sparking frustration and concern across the globe.