To disrupt the signals of enemy drones or missiles, soldiers are increasingly recourse in conflict zones to GPS jammers. This has the consequence of creating interference that disrupts navigation systems for line aircraft. The plane of the president of the European Commission recently paid the price. But is there a risk for air security?
The Falcon 900LX which transported the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, was the victim of a GPS jamming, on August 31, in Bulgaria. After shooting an hour above Plovdiv airport, the pilots finally landed using good old “paper cards”.
Russia is pointed out by the Bulgarian authorities. There is nothing very surprising. Since the start of the war in Ukraine, the phenomenon has been clearly intensified in the region and has disrupted air traffic more and more. According to the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), more than 46,000 incidents related to GPS scrambles or losses were reported in European airspace last year.
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The plane of Ursula von der Leyen victim of a GPS jamming in the sky of Bulgaria, Russia suspected
The planes are not the main target of jammers, however, but collateral victims. In conflict areas, soldiers on the ground use equipment to disrupt the signals of enemy drones or missiles. Trade planes, which do not represent a threat, are therefore not targeted. The plane of the number one of the European Commission is perhaps perhaps the exception … The Kremlin was able to deliberately “target” it to show its disapproval on this business support tour in seven European border states of Russia and Belarus.
Two main types of interference
In terms of interference, the incident arrived at the Falcon is what is called a jamming, “jamming” in English. By disturbing the relatively low signals of satellites, it leads to the total loss of GPS data. There is also the lingering, known as “spoofing”. It consists of a signal, more powerful than satellites, which sends in the cockpit of false information on the position of the plane. But in both cases, the pilots are not completely “lost” in the sky.
“Help” solutions exist
If the GPS satellites are lacking, the planes can indeed rely on beacons on the ground. And when they do not exist, above the oceans or non-covered land areas, for example, the pilots can always count on the inertia plant on board all the devices. With gyroscopes and an accelerometer, this autonomous system allows drivers to know their position in a fairly fair way.
In addition, these jammers, the size of a radio station, have relatively limited efficiency. It is generally limited to a radius of action of a few tens of kilometers around them. When an airplane flies at more than 800 km/h, therefore only a few minutes remain in a disturbed area, and as soon as it is released, the drivers recover their real position.
Different risks depending on the flight phase
In the cruising phase, these interference therefore do not have real risks on air security. In the approach and landing phases, however, they become much more problematic. Without GPS, navigation is less precise, and the pilots can find themselves offset from the track. They are then likely to collide with another aircraft, to have to make several landing attempts, and of course, to go out of the track. In such circumstances, the confusion is sometimes the option chosen by the crew.
To date, no air accidents caused by interference has yet been identified. It must be said that the pilots are warned. The areas where the risk of GPS disturbances is strong are listed and updated continuously by the International Association of Air Transport (IATA). It relies on the reports of 300 airlines. The GPSJAM portal also allows crews to see the level of interference around the world.
