UK defense minister's plane experiences GPS jamming during Estonia visit
An RAF jet with the UK defence secretary on board had its signal jammed as it flew near the Russian border earlier this week, UK media reports.
Defence Secretary John Healey had been visiting British troops in Estonia and the GPS jamming affected his return flight to the UK. The incident on Thursday lasted for three hours.
It is thought Russia was behind the incident, The Times and The Telegraph newspapers reported.
Smartphones and laptops were unable to connect to the internet and pilots had to use a different navigation system as the plane's GPS was disabled.
It is unclear if Healey was deliberately targeted but the flight path was visible on aircraft tracking websites.
In 2024, an RAF plane carrying then-Defence Secretary Grant Shapps had its GPS signal jammed while flying close to Russian territory, the BBC said.
Last year, Swedish media reported that tens of thousands of flights had been affected by GPS jamming from Russia as the country tries to protect its infrastructure from Ukrainian drone attacks.
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Editor: Helen Wright
