SpaceX wants to connect to Starlink's mobile internet network
SpaceX wants to start connecting large vehicles - from cars, trucks, cargo boats and planes - to the Starlink satellite Internet, according to a request the company has submitted to the Federal Communications Commission.
The demand marks SpaceX's biggest step so far toward connecting Starlink's internet network to the automotive sector, a lucrative business line that would expand the company's existing steady offerings of cottages.
The company asked the Federal Communications Commission to obtain a blanket license allowing Starlink stations to operate in so-called mobile earth stations, an umbrella term for cars, trucks, marine ships and aircraft.
The request stated: Users are no longer willing to forgo communication while on the move, whether they are driving a truck across the country, transporting a cargo ship from Europe to a US port, or during a domestic or international flight.
Smaller passenger cars may have to wait, and Elon Musk tweeted in response to an article on the FCC file: Tesla cars will not be connected to the Starlink internet because our terminal is so large, and this is for airplanes, ships, large trucks and recreational vehicles.
SpaceX's request to link Starlink to vehicles did not provide any details about any new antenna designs, but said: They are electrically identical to previously authorized consumer user stations but have mounts that allow them to be installed across vehicles, ships and aircraft.
Another SpaceX file said: The mobile antennas are suitable for ship masts, truck decks, passenger cars or leisure boats.
Unlike current Starlink service terminals, which come with mounts and customer-installed, vehicle antennas are prepared by qualified installers.
The move to place the Starlink station in a mobile vehicle is not surprising to SpaceX, which last year requested a trial permit to operate Starlink stations via Gulfstream aircraft.
Although Musk downplayed the possibility of equipping Tesla cars with Starlink terminals, he said in January 2020: It is definitely something that could happen in the coming years.
SpaceX appears to be more focused now on mobile connectivity efforts, indicating that it plans to direct their service to drivers, ship operators and air travelers in the United States and abroad.
The company said: The introduction of the Starlink Internet to these customers allows operators and riders to access services that allow increased productivity, and the deposit also mentioned that it enhances the security of mobile platforms.