DGCA Alert: Indian Planes Losing GPS Signal Over Parts Of Middle-East

New Delhi: In a disturbing development, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued a circular for Indian civilian aircraft operators following reports of interference in the Middle-East airspace.

There have been multiple reports in the last few days that navigation systems of civilian aircrafts are being spoofed when they are flying over parts of the Middle-East.

Taking cognizance of the fact that this could emerge as a major safety hazard, DGCA has alerted airlines of the nature of the threat and how to respond to it.

“The aviation industry is grappling with uncertainties due to new threats and reports of GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) jamming and spoofing,” states the circular issued by India’s aviation regulator.

DGCA has called for development of contingency measures to deal with the jamming of navigation systems and sought the creation of a threat monitoring and analysis network.

In September, several commercial flights went off course near Iran after their navigation systems went blind. One of those aircraft almost flew into Iranian airspace without permission.

How does the spoofing work?

Planes flying over certain parts of the Middle-East receive a spoofed GPS signal aimed at fooling the aircraft’s in-built system into thinking that they are flying miles away from their planned route, reported NDTV. The signal can at times be strong enough to compromise integrity of the aircraft’s system.

Within minutes, the inertial reference system (IRS) becomes unstable and, in some cases, the plane loses all navigation capability.

Jamming and spoofing is believed to be a result of deployment of military electronic warfare systems in areas where there is regional tension.