Pentagon lifts price of SpaceX Starlink terminals to $25,000

SpaceX has secured a significant price increase from the U.S. Department of Defense for its Starlink satellite internet service used to guide American military drones in operations against Iran. The Pentagon agreed to pay approximately $25,000 per terminal, up from roughly $5,000, after SpaceX officials argued the military was underpaying for the level of service required.

The dispute centered on the use of Starlink to operate LUCAS suicide drones, a lower-cost U.S. system comparable to Iran’s Shahed drones. SpaceX contended the drones were effectively using a higher-tier aviation service due to the network demands of their missions, while Pentagon officials initially argued the $25,000 monthly aviation fee was designed for aircraft, not drones that might use the connection for only minutes or hours. Despite these objections, the Pentagon ultimately agreed to the higher rate, nearly doubling the cost of each LUCAS drone.

This pricing conflict is part of broader, ongoing negotiations between SpaceX and the Pentagon. A separate disagreement involves a proposed U.S. plan to provide Iranian citizens with direct-to-cell Starlink service to circumvent government internet blackouts....