Key Facts:
- During the Telstra network outage on 8 July 2026, Sphere’s HubX drone platform maintained uninterrupted operations for all active client missions across Australia by redistributing traffic across healthy carrier links and a Starlink satellite backup.
- The Telstra outage, caused by a node timekeeping failure in Sydney and Melbourne data centres, disrupted millions of customers, Triple Zero emergency services, and transport infrastructure across Victoria and regional New South Wales.
- HubX bonds multiple cellular SIM cards across different carriers with a Starlink backup into a single connection, continuously monitoring network health and automatically redistributing traffic with no cutover event or downtime when a carrier fails.
- BHP RPA Specialist and Project Surveyor Shaun Van Goor praised the platform’s performance, noting that Sphere remained operational and continued providing critical drone support without compromising safety throughout the nationwide outage.
The HubX drone platform kept drones in the air during the Telstra outage on 8 July 2026, with traffic redistributing across healthy network links when the Telstra network failed and delivering zero interruption to active client missions across Australia.
Telstra traced the outage, which began as early as 4:30am and left millions of customers without mobile service for several hours, to a node timekeeping failure in its Sydney and Melbourne data centres. The outage also hit customers of Telstra-powered MVNOs Boost Mobile, Belong, Everyday Mobile, Tangerine, and ALDI Mobile.
The outage disrupted Triple Zero emergency call services, prompting warnings from Western Australia Police and the federal communications minister. It also halted train services across Victoria and regional New South Wales as transport infrastructure lost connectivity.
For Sphere’s clients flying live drone missions with HubX and Sphere’s Remote Operations Centre that morning, they had no disruption.
HubX’s technology stack bonds multiple cellular SIM cards across different carriers with a Starlink satellite backup into a single connection, keeping all network links active simultaneously. When the Telstra network failed, the platform’s continuous network link health monitoring tracked latency, packet loss, and reachability across all active connections and redistributed traffic across the remaining healthy carriers and Starlink, with no cutover event and no downtime.
Sphere Drones Chief Executive Officer Paris Cockinos said the outage was another real-world example of HubX’s inbuilt redundancy in action.
“When a carrier goes down from Telstra or Optus, our clients find out from the news. That’s the whole point of the way we’ve built HubX. Multi-carrier redundancy isn’t a feature we sell, it’s a baseline we won’t compromise on.”
“BVLOS operations require a robust command and control network link, and that’s exactly what HubX delivered this morning. Our Remote Operations Centre didn’t skip a beat.”
During the Optus outage of November 2023, which disconnected more than 10 million customers and rendered Triple Zero calls on the Optus network inoperable, HubX trials at a remote mine in the Hunter Valley continued without interruption. Traffic redistributed across Telstra and Starlink with zero impact to operations. On 8 July 2026, with Telstra down, the platform responded the same way.
Shaun Van Goor, RPA Specialist and Project Surveyor at BHP, said the platform’s resilience was on full display. “Despite the nation wide telecom outage, Sphere remained operational and continued providing critical drone support without compromising safety. These complex operations require preparation for the unexpected. Through layered redundancies and resilient system design, Sphere were tested and proven today.”
Sphere has logged more than 5,000 hours of flight time and over 5,000 missions for Australian customers across mining, energy, and critical infrastructure.
HubX is a turnkey solution allowing businesses to operate drones from anywhere, collecting data anytime and off-grid. An Australian-built all-terrain trailer powers solar panels and battery storage to support self-sustaining BVLOS drone operations. WatchTower adds airspace monitoring, site visibility, and environmental sensing alongside the DJI Dock 3 Drone-in-a-Box system.
HubX can be self-operated or managed by Sphere’s Sydney-based Remote Operations Centre, staffed by certified remote pilots holding a ReOC and Broad Area BVLOS approval.
About us:
Sphere is a leading Australian full-stack technology and services provider with offices across Australia. Sphere empowers businesses, enterprises and governments to effectively respond to challenges, risks and opportunities with innovative drone solutions.
Since 2014, Sphere has supported more than 13,000 businesses, enterprises and government departments with hardware, software, services, operational and compliance support. Customers include Rio Tinto, Fortescue, BHP, Ausgrid, Sydney Water, Water Corporation, South32, Fyfe, Surf Life Saving NSW, the University of Sydney, James Cook University, and more.
