FlowVoid
Incompetence is not a legal defense.
Sure, but the point is they have transponders. And pilots generally use them (because it's safer) unless they have a good reason not to.
Stealth aircraft spend a lot more time flying training missions over friendly territory than combat missions over enemy territory. They use transponders on training missions, such as this one, because they want to be easily visible to other military and civilian pilots.
F35s have transponders, just like every other aircraft that flies in the US. They are necessary to avoid mid-air collisions. When flying a stealth mission in enemy airspace, they can turn the transponders off.
Unfortunately, the transponder on this particular F35 is not working.
A key issue, often overlooked, is that US law imposes significant restrictions on the export and sale of military hardware.
Starlink is currently not considered military hardware. SpaceX is desperately trying to keep it that way, their ultimate goal is to sell subscriptions to civilians. Thus they get anxious when it is openly used for military purposes.
In this regard Starlink is somewhat similar to civilian GPS receivers, which automatically shut down at 1200 mph so they can't be used in missiles.
If we had a policy of nationalizing contracted military infrastructure, then nobody would make a contract with the military.
And while this may sound good to some, it sure wouldn't be in Ukraine's interest. Unreliable Starlink access is better than no Starlink access at all.
All those satellites fall back to earth after five years
That's almost certainly what his lawyers are going to do. But I think that it will be the appeals court that pisses off the MAGA idiots, and that the SCOTUS will not take the case.