Virgin Atlantic is the first UK airline to announce plans to introduce Starlink in-flight connectivity. The airline will begin installing streaming-quality Wi-Fi on its Boeing 787s, Airbus A350s, and A330neos from Q3 2026, with the installation expected to be completed by the end of 2027.   By leveraging an advanced satellite constellation in low Earth orbit, […]

One NZ, the cellular operator in New Zealand, reports that more than 2 million text messages have been carried via Starlink satellites since the service was introduced six months ago. More than 40 types of smartphones are now enabled to text via space with Starlink and SpaceX, and most messages are sent or received within […]

Starlink has well over 8,000 satellites in orbit, but they have an orbital life of around five years. The first batch of 60 operational craft were launched in May 2019. This means that some of those early launches have now reached their ‘end of life’ targets. In the six month period from December 2024 to […]

Elon Musk’s plans to start Starlink broadband services in South Africa are currently stymied. But he is reportedly planning an ambitious work-around with a 2 billion Rand (€96m) overall investment in the Southern Africa region to get around local Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) regulations. South Africa’s Business Day reports that Musk will use the investment […]

There are more than a few ‘rivals’ to Starlink, but only Eutelsat’s OneWeb has a full fleet of satellites in orbit with which to challenge Elon Musk’s broadband satellite service. The other major potential rivals are Jeff Bezos-backed Amazon Project Kuiper and Canada’s Telesat and its Lightspeed fleet. But Kuiper has only just started launching […]

India’s National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre IN-SPACe is poised to approve Starlink’s application to start broadband services in India. The company has to sign a draft authorisation document with the space regulator IN-SPACe. Once the company signs the document, the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre will pave the way for it to […]

Starlink is unlikely to gain permission to operate in South Africa any time soon, according to a local communications sector expert. Dominic Cull, a regulatory expert at communications sector legal advisory firm Ellipsis, said it will be at least two years before new regulations will be in place to allow for equity equivalents – and […]

T-Mobile will launch its new T-Satellite direct-to-cellular (DTC) service for US subscribers with SpaceX’s Starlink on July 23rd. It will follow this launch with support for data for third-party apps including WhatsApp and X in October. T-Mobile says the range of the satellite coverage will cover some 500,000 square miles of the country and include […]

Despite missiles raining down – and perhaps to ensure connectivity – Elon Musk has confirmed that SpaceX’s Starlink broadband-by-satellite is now active in Iran. On June 13th, Iran’s communications ministry announced that “temporary restrictions have been imposed on the country’s internet” in response to Israel’s wave of attacks on military and nuclear facilities. The ministry […]