Australia Post brings Starlink to 270 post offices

Australia Post has worked with Telstra to deploy Starlink enterprise internet at 270 of its most far-flung post offices.

Image credit: Australia Post

The postal organisation said the presence of Starlink at these sites made them more reliable places for rural and remote customers to access services like bill payments, banking and post.

The selected post offices were in “locations prone to inconsistent coverage or slow speeds” from existing internet access options.

“With many rural and remote customers travelling longer distances to reach services, the rollout has translated to all-important confidence their visit won’t coincide with a disruption to key post office services such as bill payment, banking and postage,” Australia Post said in a statement.

In addition to faster speeds, more reliable connectivity has improved these sites’ access to “broader technology updates being rolled out nationally across Australia Post’s network.”

The organisation said that it had been logistically challenging even getting the Starlink kit out to some locations.

“For Cape Barren, an island off the north coast of Tasmania, two planes, a boat, a car and a truck were needed to transport a Starlink satellite kit,” Australia Post said.

Australia Post called the rollout to the 270 locations “the initial phase of deployment”, suggesting a broader Starlink deployment is being contemplated.