In recent months, the Swedish Transport Administration has recorded a significant increase in interference with aviation navigation systems. An investigation has shown that the interference is coming from four Russian cities.
In recent months, the Swedish Transport Administration has recorded a significant increase in interference with aviation navigation systems. An investigation has shown that the interference is coming from four Russian cities.
In the first four months of 2025, almost 123,000 flights were affected by Russian signals affecting GPS and other satellite systems, according to a report by Sweden and five neighboring countries, SVT reports .
The study points to an increase in the number of obstacles and calls the actions of the Russian Federation a threat to flight safety. In April 2025, an average of 27,4% of flights in the airspace of Sweden and neighboring countries were affected by obstacles. In some areas, this figure exceeded 42%. The consequences range from incorrect location data to system errors that can accompany the flight all the way to its destination.
«We consider the situation serious because we are seeing a constant increase in the number of obstacles, not a decrease,» said Andreas Holmgren, head of the Transport Authority’s department.
Measurements showed that the interference was coming from the Russian cities of Kaliningrad, St. Petersburg, Smolensk and Rostov. European authorities warned pilots with special messages and urged airlines to increase their preparedness.
«We are prepared for the fact that such threats, obstacles and pressure will continue,» said Swedish Defense Minister Poul Jönsson.
Last week, it was reported that the plane of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made an emergency landing in Bulgaria due to alleged interference from Russian GPS jamming systems. The crew had to use regular paper maps for navigation.
«We can confirm that there was GPS interference, but the plane landed safely in Bulgaria. We have received information from the Bulgarian authorities that they suspect that this was caused by clear Russian interference,» a Commission spokesman said on Monday after the incident. Bulgarian officials later denied the allegations and refused to investigate the circumstances.
This week, the European Parliament is scheduled to debate the incident with Ursula von der Leyen’s plane and cases of Russian interference in navigation systems.
