Russia has been jamming the GPS on a whole lot of RAF flights travelling over Jap Europe this 12 months with Grant Shapps’ flight focused on its approach again from Poland in March.
In-depth evaluation has revealed the hazards of such practices to each civil and navy flights and provides an perception into the extent of Russia’s meddling with aviation.
And a whopping one in 4 transport and surveillance journeys from January to April 2024 had been affected by the interference into GPS [global positioning system], in line with a Flight Radar 24 research into information from hundreds of flights.
The detailed evaluation into 1,467 flights made by 63 RAF plane throughout Jap Europe and the Center East confirmed 142 RAF transport and surveillance flights out of 504 throughout Jap Europe had been topic to the jamming.
One in eight, amounting to 60 journeys, had been the sufferer of repeated makes an attempt to jam GPS methods.
A research has discovered Russia jams GPS on a whole lot of RAF flights. In March Grant Shapps’s RAF Dassault Falcon 900’s GPS system was blocked on its approach again from Poland (Inventory Picture)
Shapps pictured in Poland. The Defence Secretary advised The Telegraph : ‘That is one other instance of Russia’s recklessness and extra proof that they’re an out-of-control hostile state’
Vladimir Putin pictured in June. In-depth evaluation has revealed the hazards of such practices to each civil and navy flights and provides an perception into Russia’s meddling with aviation
The variety of RAF flights affected soared to 40 per cent went considering flights travelling throughout the jap Mediterranean.
Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary advised The Telegraph: ‘That is one other instance of Russia’s recklessness and extra proof that they’re an out-of-control hostile state.
‘Fortunately our planes and pilots can see off this menace however it illustrates president Putin’s contempt for the West and for the worldwide rules-based order.’
Shapps was affected by Russian jamming three months in the past whereas heading again from a visit to Poland because it flew close to its Kaliningrad enclave yesterday.
The RAF Dassault Falcon 900’s major GPS system and its satellite tv for pc communications had been blocked for approaching half-hour.
The assault passed off on his return journey from Poland. Particulars of the Defence Secretary’s flight out to the UK’s NATO ally was tracked on social media.
Mr Shapps was conducting a day journey to jap Europe to satisfy UK troops participating in Train Steadfast Defender – the most important NATO manoeuvres because the Chilly Warfare.
The plane flew inside 60 miles of Kaliningrad on its return journey yesterday night having departed RAF Northolt in west London that morning.
Lots of of economic flights working in the identical airspace have reported related issues in latest months because the Kremlin steps up its Digital Warfare (EW) marketing campaign in opposition to the West.
With out GPS, pilots lose their situational consciousness – successfully, they’re unaware of their location – which in a worse case situation may trigger a deadly collision.
In keeping with UK defence sources there was no menace to Mr Shapps’ plane yesterday as it’s geared up with back-up methods which Russia did not penetrate.
Typhoons, F-35 fighter jets, A400M transport plane and Voyager troop planes have all been affected.
The planes analysed within the latest research every had a transponder which broadcasts a quantity valuing how correct the GPS is and when this determine drops beneath a given threshold, consultants say it’s a dependable signal that jamming is happening.
C-17 cargo and A400M carrying fleets, in addition to the RC-135 surveillance airplane had been additionally concerned within the evaluation.
Whereas the jammer which focused the Defence Secretary’s flight was positioned within the Kaliningrad exclave, which is a bit of Russian territory on the shores of the Baltic Sea, Moscow additionally conducts some jamming from Syria, in line with geopolitical consultants.
Shapps pictured in March with Polish Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Nationwide Protection Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz on a visit which noticed his flight’s GPS jammed by Russia
Airbus A400M carrying fleets had been concerned within the evaluation amongst different plane (Inventory Picture)
C-17 cargo planes had been additionally affected by GPS jamming (Inventory Picture)
In the meantime, some jamming indicators could originate in Israel as a buffer in opposition to potential GPS-guided weapons launched by Hamas.
The Ministry of Defence has been contacted for remark.
MailOnline has additionally approached the International, Commonwealth and Growth Workplace for remark.
