‘No foreign kill switch’: Ukraine outlines plans for its own military satellite network
Ukraine is developing its own satellite communications network to give its military and critical infrastructure secure connections that no foreign operator could restrict or shut down, according to the company behind the project.
The proposed network would require at least 100 satellites, cost hundreds of millions of euros and take at least two to three years to deploy even under the most optimistic scenario.
Dmytro Khmara, vice president of satellite technologies at Ukrainian defense technology company Himera, outlined the plans in an interview with Defense Express published on November 9.
"The main thing about this communications system is that it will be fully controlled by Ukrainians. No one abroad will have a button to restrict or switch it off," Khmara said.
Not a replacement for Starlink
Khmara stressed that Himera is not trying to build a Ukrainian version of Elon Musk's Starlink, the satellite internet service widely used by Ukraine's military.
Instead, the project is intended to provide strategic communications linking military command centers and critical infrastructure facilities, including civilian ones.
The company estimates that at least 100 low-Earth-orbit satellites would be needed to provide uninterrupted coverage across Ukraine. Their precise orbital configuration has not yet been finalized.
Himera and Danish satellite manufacturer GomSpace launched the first experimental satellite, OBRIA NANO, aboard a SpaceX mission on October 1.
[Read our earlier report on Ukraine's first experimental satellite.]
The roughly 10-kilogram satellite is still undergoing onboard system checks and equipment configuration. It is currently operated by GomSpace, with control expected to transfer to Ukraine later.
Future operational satellites would be substantially larger, weighing approximately 250 kilograms each.
A project measured in years
Khmara said the initiative is currently funded entirely by private investment, with no Ukrainian government funding so far. The developers hope to attract European financing and eventually manufacture satellites and ground terminals in Ukraine.
However, initial satellites may be assembled elsewhere in Europe to accelerate deployment.
Even the company's optimistic timeline is at least two to three years. Comparable satellite network projects typically take five to seven years, Khmara acknowledged.
The goal of a fully Ukrainian-controlled network therefore remains years away, with key technical and financing decisions still unresolved.