The UK has experienced major disruptions to thousands of flights due to what is believed to be “extremely dangerous” jamming, suspected to have been executed by Russia, according to a report in The Sun.

These electronic attacks have particularly impacted satellite navigation (satnav), making aircraft routes challenging to navigate. Pilots have also encountered difficulties in communicating their location to colleagues while in the air.

In some instances, the situation has become so concerning that planes have had to take evasive action, including swerving and diving to avoid perceived “obstacles” that were not actually present.

The Sun reported that, up until the end of March, a huge number of Ryanair and Wizz Air flights encountered satnav problems in the Baltic region, with British Airways, Jet2, and EasyJet flights also affected.

Jamming disrupts the satellite signals, including GPS, preventing them from reaching aircraft and misleading pilots about their actual location.

Luc Tytgat, head of EASA, expressed concerns about the escalating attacks on these systems.

“GPS jamming does not directly impact the navigation of an aircraft and while it’s a known issue, this does not mean an aircraft has been jammed deliberately,” he said in a statement.

The suspected Russian attacks have surged from fewer than 50 incidents per week last year to over 350 per week last month, as per The Sun’s claims.

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Regarding an incident involving British defense minister Grant Shapps, it was reported that Russia jammed the satellite signal on the aircraft he was travelling on, disrupting the GPS signal for approximately 30 minutes near Russia’s Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad. 

(With inputs from agencies)