Russia started using Starlink-connected Shahed drones in Ukraine. What is known and why it's dangerous

Russia began massive use of Shahed-type kamikaze attack drones (in the Russian version - "Geran-2") back in autumn 2022, but over three years of war, it has significantly modernized them.

While these UAVs previously flew to their target along a pre-programmed route, in autumn 2025, cases of "Shaheds" being controlled in online mode began to be recorded. This means that an operator in the Russian Federation could search for and attack a target in real-time, even if it was moving.

For this purpose, a mesh system was used, meaning an increase in radio communication range through relaying, where one of the drones in the "swarm" acted as a repeater so that the operator could control and attack with another drone.

It was probably in this way that on December 22, 2025, the Russian army managed to hit a freight train near the city of Korosten (Zhytomyr region). From there to the border with Russia is almost 270 km.

However, the mesh system has drawbacks, for example, the need for a repeater drone.

Therefore, the next stage of modification was the installation of Starlink satellite communication terminals directly on the attack drone by the Russians.

Drones with Starlink: First cases

The first report about the detection of a Russian drone with Starlink was made on December 15, 2025, by leading Ukrainian expert in military radio technologies Serhii Beskrestnov (call sign "Flash"). On January 25, he was appointed advisor to the new Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Mykhailo Fedorov.

Last December, Beskrestnov published a photograph of a Russian UAV "Molniya," clearly showing a Starlink satellite communication terminal.

This type of drone is quite cheap and widely distributed at the front. It flies up to 30 km and can carry a small warhead weighing 3-7 kg. "Molniya" is used both as a kamikaze drone and as a carrier for several small FPV drones.

"Daily, we record 'Molniya' UAV strikes with 'Starlink.' And not only at the front. Recently, they attacked Mykolaiv's energy infrastructure. 'Starlink Mini' is primarily flying. The enemy has already started erasing serial numbers on the terminals," "Flash" reported on December 26.

Already on January 15, he announced a new case of detecting a Russian drone with a satellite communication terminal. This referred to the BM-35 (also known as "Italmas"). This attack drone is similar to a scaled-down version of the "Shahed" but has a gasoline engine in the front. It can fly 500 km, carry 15-27 kg of explosives, and perform functions as both a reconnaissance and attack UAV.

At the end of January, it was recorded that a BM-35 reached Dnipro, and on January 26, according to "Flash," it was this drone that flew over Kyiv for almost four hours unimpeded.

Павялічыць

On January 24, Russian media and Telegram channels published footage of drone attacks on two Ukrainian Mi-24 and Mi-8 helicopters, which were parked on a pad in a field near Kropyvnytskyi. Since there were no repeater drones nearby, Serhii Beskrestnov concluded that this was the first use of Shaheds with Starlink satellite communication.

"They flew on manual control almost at ground level so that radar stations (RLS) wouldn't see them. Did I expect this? Yes. Did I warn about it? Yes. Did anyone listen to me? No," "Flash" wrote.

According to his information, "Shaheds" with online control (either with a mesh system or with Starlink) also attacked a passenger train near Barvinkove station in the Kharkiv region on January 27. At least five people died.

Why is this dangerous?

For a long time, reliable and accessible satellite communication from Starlink was a great advantage for the Ukrainian Defense Forces.

SpaceX prohibited Russian citizens from accessing this system, and the communication itself did not work over Russian territory.

However, over time, it became known that Russian citizens are still finding ways to obtain terminals and use Starlink, mainly by purchasing it in third countries through proxies.

Therefore, it was only a matter of time before they began to use this technology against Ukrainian forces at the front and in the rear.

Kyiv was unprepared for such a development.

Now, countering such drones with electronic warfare (EW) systems is almost impossible, and shooting them down is also not easy, as they can bypass air defense positions and fly very low.

Павялічыць

"This is a great danger for us. Imagine that Russians can control 'Shaheds' online, and not just them, but any attack UAVs, and reach wherever they want," explained Serhii Beskrestnov in an interview with "Radio NV."

According to his data, the use of "Molniya" with Starlink satellite communication for attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure had a fairly high effectiveness – about 38%.

This is due to the drone flying at low altitude and bypassing Ukrainian radars and air defense positions.

A "Shahed," dozens of times more powerful, poses an even greater danger to Ukraine.

"What is the threat? Consider it a large FPV, controlled from Russian territory by an operator in real-time. We all know that Starlink works well, provides a sufficiently clear channel for video information and control transmission, so this is one of the challenges that I, in particular, will now have to face and fight," says the advisor to the Minister of Defense.

What can Ukraine do?

According to "Flash," there are several solutions that could neutralize the danger of "Shaheds" operating on Starlink.

The first and most obvious is to negotiate with the American authorities and SpaceX management to force them to disable individual terminals on the territory of Ukraine. That is, those that are not included in the registry of "correct" "Starlinks."

"We need to ban roaming for 'foreign' 'Starlinks' that fly into our country. That is, only 'our' 'Starlinks' should work, and for this, a specific registry of all 'Starlinks' used by the Defense Forces and volunteers needs to be created. It should be provided to the official Starlink dealer in Ukraine, and all new connections should be made only through them," "Flash" explains.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski publicly appealed to SpaceX owner Elon Musk with a request to "stop Russians from using Starlink for attacks on Ukrainian cities."

The Polish diplomat received a far from diplomatic response from the American billionaire. Musk did not directly answer the request but rudely insulted Sikorski.

"This drooling imbecile does not even realize that Starlink is the backbone of Ukraine's military communications," Elon Musk stated.

Returning to Ukrainian problems, it is worth noting that air defense forces should pay special attention to "Shaheds" with Starlink, Beskrestnov believes.

He emphasizes that it is necessary to develop an algorithm for timely detection of such airborne assets and a mechanism for air defense assets, such as anti-aircraft drones, to deal with them. In addition, according to the expert, it is necessary to strengthen the protection of Ukrainian military equipment, particularly aviation, at bases deep within the territory.

While the use of attack drones with Starlink has not become widespread, Ukraine still has a little time to find countermeasures.

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