46,000 planes reported GPS interference on flights over the Baltic since August with Russian origin – Computers

More than 2,300 flights by Ryanair, around 1,400 by Wizz Air, 80 by British Airways and four by easyJet are on a list of around 46,000 cases of planes that detected interference to GPS systems while passing through the Baltic Sea. The cases have been recorded since August 2023 and recently reported by The Sun. tabloid made a list of the countries and cities of destination and their respective risk of interference. Portuguese destinations (Faro, Funchal, Lisbon, Ponta Delgada, Porto and Terceira Island) were identified as low risk of interference.

risk of GPS interference on planes bound for Portugal. source: The Sun

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The analysis was based on flight records available on the GPSJAM.org website, with the majority of reported problems with GPS problems coming from Eastern Europe, bordering Russia. As GPS is the main tool of the navigation system, interference can become a serious risk to the plane’s safety.

The Guardian, which points to the attacks as originating from Russia, highlights that a Royal Air Force plane carrying British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps had its GPS signal interfered with while flying near a Russian base in the Baltic in Kaliningrad. , when returning to the United Kingdom from Poland. Even admitting that the blockade did not threaten the safety of the plane, the British authorities pointed out that it was an irresponsible act.

In January, a summit was held between the International Air Transport Association and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). to discuss issues related to GPS blocking, where the large increase in this type of attacks was highlighted.

The European entity intends to give priority to resolving this type of threat, but the British civil aviation authority seems less concerned, stating that interference is normally associated with military activity, not meaning that commercial planes are being directly identified as targets. Director of flight operations, Glenn Bradley says that aviation continues to be one of the safest forms of air travel and that there are several protocols to protect navigation systems. A Information was confirmed by representatives from Ryanair and easyJet, regarding the existence of procedures to mitigate problems associated with GPS blocking.