Instances of jamming and spoofing of airliner navigation systems are becoming increasingly common in the Nordic and Baltic areas, with airlines responding by introducing procedures that avoid the use of global positioning systems (GPS).
Scandinavian Airlines (SAS), for example, says it experiences regular jamming in the area—as well as in the Eastern Mediterranean—and is increasingly encountering “spoofing,” where electronic interference fools the aircraft’s navigational systems into thinking the aircraft is in a location that differs from reality.
Meanwhile, Reuters has reported that a Jan. 17 Ryanair flight from London Luton to the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, abandoned its approach and diverted to Warsaw, Poland, because of GPS interference.
Russian jamming and spoofing have become a particular problem since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war. Defense experts have told Aviation Daily in the past that they do not believe that electronic interference is deliberately aimed at civilian airliners but is rather intended to defend against Ukrainian military aircraft, missiles and drones.
A report in the Jan. 17 issue of The Barents Observer, which covers the border areas between the Nordic nations and Russia, featured an SAS captain, Johan Lester, who said that his flight from Oslo to the Norwegian town of Kirkenes was spoofed that day.
Kirkenes lies just 6 nm (10 km) from the Norwegian-Russian border, in the extreme north of Norway. It is also just 80 nm from the huge Russian naval base at Murmansk, the home of the country’s Northern Fleet. The nearby Kola Peninsula is also home to several Russian air force bases that house strike aircraft that have launched missiles against Ukrainian targets. Their bases, in turn, have previously been attacked by Ukrainian drones.
Lester told The Barents Observer that the jamming and spoofing was a concern, but that SAS, in response, had set up procedures that did not use GPS.
“We are worried, yes, and it is something we take into account on every single flight to East-Finnmark [the northernmost region of Norway],” he said. “This is similar to what we see when we fly to destinations in the east Mediterranean, like Cyprus and Turkey. But don’t worry. We will not fly if it is unsafe.”
SAS has instituted several measures to counteract the electronic interference.
“SAS, like all operators, has seen an increase in both jamming and spoofing over the past year,” an SAS spokeswoman told Aviation Daily. “These challenges are well known, and we have robust systems and procedures in place to handle them, minimizing disruptions. Important to note is that the element of safety is always our top priority and is not affected by these disturbances.”
“For example,” SAS spokeswoman continued, “in areas like Kirkenes, jamming has been a known factor for years. We mitigate this effectively by using traditional navigation systems such as ILS and VOR approaches, ensuring safe operations without operational impact. These measures are part of our standard protocols and can be applied as needed across our network.”
Ryanair did not reply to a request for information on the Vilnius incident.