‘Russian satnav jammers’ hit thousands of British flights
Thousands of British airline flights heading to the Baltics have been hit by suspected Russian satnav jamming.
Flights affected in the eight months to the end of March included 2,309 by Ryanair, 1,368 by Wizz Air, 82 by British Airways and four by easyJet.
This is based on analysis of flight logs with GPS Jam – a website which records incidents of Global Positioning System (GPS) interference – according to The Sun.
Civilian passenger flights were affected by the broadcasting of spoof signals, which confuse airliners’ navigation computers.
GPS jammers send out false data that disrupts the crucial satnav signal upon which an airliner’s systems rely. This triggers erroneous warnings in the flight deck, distracting pilots and potentially putting lives at risk.
The spoof broadcasts can include false altitude and location information, which spark warnings intended to prevent airliners hitting mountains or descending below a safe height in hilly or urban areas.
The Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, on the shores of the Baltic, is well known as a jamming hotspot among airliner crews, sources have previously said. Flights to and from Cyprus are also often affected by jamming, The Telegraph understands.
In March, an RAF plane carrying Defence Secretary Grant Shapps was targeted while flying near Kaliningrad. Its GPS signal was interfered with for about 30 minutes while the flight was heading back to the UK from Poland, it is understood.
Downing Street confirmed the plane “experienced GPS jamming” but said it “didn’t threaten the safety of the aircraft”.
‘Sharp rise in attacks’
Aviation executives have been concerned about GPS interference for years, with the potential risks increasing after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Luc Tytgat, boss of the European Aviation Safety Authority, said in January: “We have seen a sharp rise in attacks on these systems, which poses a safety risk.”
Earlier this year a commercial pilot, who works for a leading airline, said: “Every flight I operate across northern Turkey and into Iraq – essentially along the Russian and Iranian borders – now has GPS interference.
“Aircraft systems alert us when something isn’t working. We often get numerous alerts in the space of a couple of hours. It’s been like that for around a year now.”
‘Safety protocols’
Pilots can switch to back-up systems, including using ground-based beacons that are not affected by GPS jammers, because they operate on different radio frequencies.
Glenn Bradley, a Civil Aviation Authority spokesman, insisted that flying remained one of the safest forms of travel.
He said: “There are several safety protocols in place to protect navigation systems on commercial aircraft.
“GPS jamming does not directly impact the navigation of an aircraft and, while it’s a known issue, this does not mean an aircraft has been jammed deliberately.
“While operators have mitigations in place to assure continued safe operations, we work closely with other aviation regulators, airlines and aircraft manufacturers to curb and mitigate any risks posed by jamming and continuously monitor incidents worldwide.”
