Spanish defence minister’s aircraft targeted by GPS jamming near Russia's Kaliningrad

A Spanish military aircraft carrying Defence Minister Margarita Robles was subjected to an attempted GPS interference while flying near Kaliningrad.

The incident occurred on September 24 as Robles was en route to the Šiauliai Air Base in Lithuania aboard an A330 aircraft, Caliber.Az reports, citing Ukrainian media.

The plane reportedly encountered an effort to disrupt its GPS system during its passage through airspace near the Russian exclave.

“The incident, which was aimed at disabling the military aircraft's GPS, had no consequences, as the aircraft is equipped to receive signals from a military satellite. One of the commanders present noted that such attempts are common in this area and affect both civilian and military flights,” the media writes.

In addition to the defence minister, family members of personnel from the VILKAS military unit and several journalists were also aboard the aircraft. The purpose of the trip was to hold a meeting with Lithuania’s Minister of Defence to deepen cooperation with NATO and counter actions by Russia.

Reports of GPS signal disruptions across Europe have grown in recent years. Last year, high levels of jamming were recorded across northern and eastern Poland — including the capital, Warsaw, and as far south as the city of Łódź. Analysts have pointed to Russia’s electronic warfare infrastructure in Kaliningrad as the likely source of the disruptions.

Estonia also previously accused Russia of being responsible for widespread GPS interference in the Baltic Sea region.

On August 31, another serious incident occurred when a plane carrying European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was forced to make an emergency landing in Bulgaria. Pilots reportedly lost navigational capability due to suspected Russian GPS jamming.

Arianna Podestà, spokeswoman for the European Commission, later confirmed that von der Leyen's aircraft had indeed experienced GPS signal interference.

By Vafa Guliyeva