A second Finnair plane heading from Helsinki to Estonia was forced to turn back on Friday because the GPS signal was jammed and could not land in Tartu, reports ERROR.
Finnair plane cannot land in Tartu due to GPS signal jammingPhoto: Kristjan Teedema / imago stock&people / Profimedia
“The same thing happened the day before. Somewhere halfway through its route, the plane turned back, about 15 minutes before landing. The pilot said that approaching Tartu at night required an accurate GPS signal, and there was none due to interference from the eastern neighbors,” a passenger on board the plane told ERR.
On Thursday evening, another Finnair plane traveling from Helsinki to Tartu had to turn back due to GPS interference.
However, the day flight from Helsinki to Tartu on Friday was free of problems and was able to land in Tartu before later departing for Helsinki as scheduled.
“Our pilots are very aware of GPS disturbances, and the aircraft’s systems quickly detect GPS disturbances. Our aircraft use multiple sources to calculate the aircraft’s position, which allows for accurate navigation times even when the GPS is not working. Most airports have standard equipment that allows landing without GPS, but Tartu is one of the few airports where the approach procedures require a GPS signal, which is why the landing was unsuccessful,” Finnair’s spokesperson told ERR on Friday.
GPS signal jamming has been happening since late 2022 and Russia is believed to be behind these events.
DPA reported at the beginning of the month that Estonia is noticing more and more disruptions to GPS satellite navigation, sometimes as many as 20 times a day.
“Every day we receive 10 to 20 reports from pilots that there is GPS interference in some areas where they pass through Estonia,” declared Ivar Vark, the head of air traffic control in the Baltic EU and NATO member country, on Estonian television.
The Guardian also reported this month that around 46,000 aircraft have experienced GPS problems over the Baltic Sea since August last year, with most of the GPS problems occurring in Eastern Europe, bordering Russia.
