According to the international airlines organization IATA, pilots must remain more vigilant due to the increasing number of planes experiencing GPS spoofing and jamming.
The problem has grown in recent years, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which represents over 360 airlines that account for more than 80% of all air travel worldwide. According to PTI, the consortium includes Indian airlines Air India, IndiGo, Air India Express, and SpiceJet.
Major Indian airports, including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Amritsar, Hyderabad, Bangalore, and Chennai, have also reported instances of GPS spoofing and interference in recent months.
IATA officials expressed concern about the rise in GPS interference incidents during meetings in Geneva this week. IATA Director General Willie Walsh stated that because GPS spoofing and jamming events have sharply increased, pilots must be more vigilant during operations.
"It is now present everywhere in the world." Spoofing and jamming the Global Positioning System (GPS) or Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) entails attempting to disrupt navigation systems by transmitting false signals.
GNSS spoofing is categorized as International Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
According to Nick Careen, Senior Vice President Operations, Safety and Security at IATA, these occurrences first occurred in the Middle East before spreading to Eastern Europe during the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
"Now, there are incidents in Venezuela, Asia, and India," he stated. According to IATA data, the number of GPS loss incidents per 1,000 flights, or the GPS loss rate, is predicted to be 59 in 2025 as opposed to 31 in 2022.
The figures are based on information from the Global Aviation Data Management (GADM) program's Flight Data eXchange (FDX), an aggregated and de-identified flight data repository.
The database is updated by airlines that take part in the program. Based on fewer documented flights in 2022, the GPS loss rate was 31; nevertheless, in 2024, it grew to 56, indicating a consistent trend despite higher traffic.
The GPS loss rate is predicted to hit 59 this year, according to a presentation by Careen. The increase is "notable and concerning it suggests that GPS interference or jamming is becoming more frequent, not merely a function of flight volume," according to him.
According to IATA, FDX uses data-driven insights to manage airline safety concerns. Careen stated that civil aviation was not being targeted when questioned about the reasons behind these occurrences.
"We simply happen to be too close to it or whatever they are doing is actually a little bit beyond their targeted area," he stated. "We are just bystanders because it is typical military response to airspace management around a conflict zone."
Stronger systems, coordination, and communication could help solve the issue, according to Careen. "We're increasing awareness." Would I be unable to board an aircraft because of GPS spoofing or jamming? "No," he replied.
In the two years from November 2023, 1,951 incidences of aircraft GPS tampering have been detected, India's civil aviation ministry informed the Lok Sabha this week.
After the Directorate General of Civil Aviation published an advising circular on GNSS interference in airspace in November 2023, GPS interference reporting was underway.
