Soon after Russia invaded Ukraine in February, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to ship Starlink web terminals to the nation. His firm donated and is masking the price of the service for just a few months. However, the US authorities reportedly paid tens of millions for a few of the terminals and to get all of them to Ukraine, regardless of statements on the contrary from the corporate’s president.

The United States Agency for International Development purchased round 1,500 terminals at a value of $1,500 every, based on paperwork obtained by It additionally coated transportation prices for all of the terminals to the tune of $800,000, ensuing within the company shelling out over $3 million. In all, the company and SpaceX despatched greater than 5,000 terminals to Ukraine, with a third-party contractor dealing with transportation and supply.

It’s unclear whether or not USAID paid over the chances for the terminals. SpaceX the value of a Starlink terminal from $499 to $549 for deposit holders and to $599 for recent orders. As of April twenty second, the month-to-month worth of the satellite-powered web service is growing from $99 to $110. The firm introduced a better tier service earlier this yr that prices $2,500 for a terminal and $500 monthly for service.

SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell that France and presumably Poland helped get the terminals to Ukraine. “I don’t think the US has given us any money to give terminals to the Ukraine,” Shotwell mentioned. SpaceX is claimed to have donated $10 million value of terminals and Starlink service to the nation, which is laudable sufficient, although the corporate wasn’t precisely clear about the place funding for different elements of the operation got here from.

On prime of that, Musk needed to over the usage of Starlink, on condition that Russia might be able to triangulate the situation of a terminal uplink. Musk urged individuals to make use of Starlink solely when wanted and avoid different individuals whereas doing so.

This is not the primary time that Musk has supplied assist throughout a disaster the place his enter hasn’t gone with out a hitch. In 2018, he took to Thailand to help with the rescue of 12 boys and their coach who have been trapped in a cave. Not solely have been these individuals safely retrieved by the point he acquired there, the mini-sub was anyway.