Archived material Access restricted Article
Rantburg

Today's Front Page   View All of Fri 09/08/2023 View Thu 09/07/2023 View Wed 09/06/2023 View Tue 09/05/2023 View Mon 09/04/2023 View Sun 09/03/2023 View Sat 09/02/2023
1
2023-09-08 Cyber
Elon Musk secretly ordered Starlink engineers to TURN OFF satellite communications to disrupt Ukrainian sneak attack on Russian naval fleet, new biography claims
Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.
Posted by Skidmark 2023-09-08 01:33|| E-Mail|| Front Page|| [11123 views ]  Top

#1 The dangers of relying on foreign tech.
Posted by Grom the Reflective 2023-09-08 02:47||   2023-09-08 02:47|| Front Page Top

#2 The Blaze - Elon Musk says people seem to have 'an innate need for religion'
Posted by Besoeker 2023-09-08 03:41||   2023-09-08 03:41|| Front Page Top

#3 Well, I get my shit turned off if I don't pay my bills.
Posted by DooDahMan 2023-09-08 06:28||   2023-09-08 06:28|| Front Page Top

#4 Might explain why FAA is slow-walking permits for the next Starship / ultraheavy try.
Posted by M. Murcek 2023-09-08 07:15||   2023-09-08 07:15|| Front Page Top

#5 True or not, it does serve as an example of the possible threat Global Corporations pose, when situations conflict with their business plans and ROI.

Posted by NN2N1 2023-09-08 08:07||   2023-09-08 08:07|| Front Page Top

#6 Who says China can't turn off the electronics in a lot of our existing military gear any time they want?
Posted by M. Murcek 2023-09-08 08:09||   2023-09-08 08:09|| Front Page Top

#7 Blaming policy failures on political opponents doesn't sound like the politicians I know.
Posted by swksvolFF 2023-09-08 09:55||   2023-09-08 09:55|| Front Page Top

#8 Who says China can't turn off the electronics in a lot of our existing military gear any time they want?

I'd be more about refrigerators. Those cheap IoT chips are made in Chinese fabs.
Posted by Enver Slager8035 2023-09-08 09:58||   2023-09-08 09:58|| Front Page Top

#9 Elon Musk admits preventing Ukrainian attack on Russia by refusing access to Starlink 'to avoid being complicit in a major act of war' - but furious Kyiv says his 'big ego' led to civilians being killed
Posted by Skidmark 2023-09-08 10:03||   2023-09-08 10:03|| Front Page Top

#10 True or not

Apparently, by Musk's admission, true. Sorta.
Posted by M. Murcek 2023-09-08 10:05||   2023-09-08 10:05|| Front Page Top

#11 The Aerotime article is consistent with the Starlink deployment even since before they tried to skimp on paying the bills.

Sounds like they are implying that because Starlink didn't go 110% all in on weaponizing its civilian service the vaunted Ukainian Spring Counter-Offensive failed. That they were using a system not intended or designed for what they were using it for.
Posted by swksvolFF 2023-09-08 13:52||   2023-09-08 13:52|| Front Page Top

#12 Curiously, and I'm sure its pure coincidence, SpaceX just got grounded. It sounds like a long and complicated process, capital intensive, and just when Tesla is sucking wind and X is still not profitable. Almost like punishment designed to ruin the man!

..."In order for SpaceX to resume Starship launches at its facility in Boca Chica, Texas, the company will need to "implement all corrective actions that impact public safety," as determined by the FAA, and to apply for and receive a "license modification from the FAA" that addresses all of its safety, and other environmental regulatory requirements."

https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2023/09/08/faa-starship-grounded-corrective-action.html
Posted by NoMoreBS 2023-09-08 16:01||   2023-09-08 16:01|| Front Page Top

#13 "Secretly" Musk Said this out loud and publicly via a few dozen Press Releases:

"Starlink was not meant to be involved in wars. It was so people can watch Netflix and chill, and get online for school and do good peaceful things, not drone strikes.”
- E.Musk
Posted by mossomo 2023-09-08 16:31||   2023-09-08 16:31|| Front Page Top

#14 Well, funny how Silicon Valley more or less does the same thing by de-platforming people and cancelling accounts and deleting posts.

Meanwhile, I just read where Elon said he never had Starlink activated in that area in the first place, so it was never "turned off".
Posted by DooDahMan 2023-09-08 17:00||   2023-09-08 17:00|| Front Page Top

#15 ^^ True, Starlink terminals and accounts are usually 'geofenced' to a given geographic service area. Apparently those sent to Ukraine were restricted to the area which it then controlled. (Makes sense - captured ones taken into Russia or the occupied part of Ukraine would just quit working.) This came out last fall during the Kharkiv offensive when some of UA forces outran SpaceX's updating of the allowed area. So, yeah, adding Crimea and the Black Sea to the fenced area would have been an explicit act in support of an attack.
Posted by Nero 2023-09-08 17:36||   2023-09-08 17:36|| Front Page Top

#16 Nonstop war zealots say US should nationalize SpaceX
Posted by M. Murcek 2023-09-08 18:05||   2023-09-08 18:05|| Front Page Top

23:43 Bangkok Billy
23:33 Gomez Munster8068
23:24 Gomez Munster8068
21:48 Gomez Munster8068
21:14 Gomez Munster8068
20:53 Bangkok Billy
19:35 49 Pan
19:26 Frank G
19:08 49 Pan
19:08 Mercutio
18:50 Procopius2k
18:45 swksvolFF
18:41 
18:35 Airandee
18:26 Crereque Clusogum7898
18:14 Frank G
18:09 swksvolFF
18:05 M. Murcek
17:44 Skidmark
17:41 Skidmark
17:36 Skidmark
17:36 Anomalous Sources
17:36 Nero
17:27 Mullah Richard
Merry-Go-Blog










Paypal:
Google
Search WWW Search rantburg.com