Report: Russia Jams GPS on EU Chief's Plane

GPS jamming prevents pilots from being able to access a plane’s satellite-based navigation system. It has been increasingly used by Moscow to disrupt civilian life, with EU countries warning that it could cause a major air disaster.

Since the war in Ukraine began in 2022, jamming incidents have become more common in the Baltic Sea and eastern European states, located near Russia.

In July, Lithuania said it had located more than 10 locations in the Russian enclave of Kalininigrad, “from where Russia is causing this interference”.

Pilots in the country reported disruptions to their GPS communications on more than 1,000 occasions in June – a jump from 46 times in the previous month. Estonia and Finland also criticised Moscow for alleged jamming incidents last year.

GPS uses a network of satellites and receiving devices for positioning and navigation, replacing ground devices that would previously transmit radio beams towards planes as they landed.

Jamming involves overwhelming GPS receivers with signals to render the receiver unusable, making it difficult or impossible for pilots to know their location. It can also prevent them from communicating with air traffic control. It can be carried out by relatively cheap, accessible frequency transmitting devices.

She described Putin as a “predator” during a trip to the Poland-Belarus border on Sunday, adding: “We have to keep the sense of urgency because we know that Putin has not changed and will not changed.”

In addition to Poland and Bulgaria, she will also visit Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia – which share a border with Russia – as well as Romania. It is her most significant diplomatic push on EU security and defence since the immediate period after Putin’s invasion.