On 24th November (Friday), the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued an advisory to all Indian airlines. The advisory highlighted measures to deal with the emerging threats from “jamming” and “spoofing” of the Global Navigation Satellite System. The advisory comes in the wake of recent reports of “interference” with the aircraft’s navigation system over parts of Middle-Eastern airspace.
As a result of these “interferences” by ways of spoofing and jamming, there were increasing reports that aircraft lost GPS signals and several civilian flights had been navigating blindly over the Middle Eastern region.
The DGCA circular is for aircraft operators, pilots, air navigation service providers, and air traffic controllers. It states, “The aviation industry is grappling with uncertainties due to new threats and reports of GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) jamming and spoofing.”
The circular takes note of “increasing reports of GNSS interference over the airspace in the Middle East in the recent past”. It has called for the development of contingency measures so that it can deal with the jamming of navigation systems. Further, the DGCA has also sought the creation of a threat monitoring and analysis network.
Notably, in late September, there were multiple reported incidents where Indian civilian aircraft had to divert from Iranian airspace due to a snag in the navigation system. Reports underscored that multiple commercial flights near Iran deviated from their planned routes when their navigation systems experienced disruptions and they went blind while flying over the region. In one particular case, a flight came close to entering Iranian airspace without permission after it became a victim of spoofing.
On 4th October, India’s highest civil aviation regulatory body, DGCA constituted an internal committee based on these reports of interferences with the GNSS over the Middle East.
Based on the committee’s report, DGCA has issued this advisory which provides comprehensive mitigation measures and an action plan. The circular has also been issued to the Airports Authority of India (AAI) which is the country’s air navigation service provider (ANSP), and all air traffic controllers come under it.
The DGCA circular is about the development of contingency procedures with support from equipment manufacturers and assessing operational risk by conducting a safety risk assessment.
Emerging threat of ‘Spoofing’
GPS spoofing and jamming are actions where someone intentionally transmits false signals to disrupt the regular operation of GPS systems. Spoofing occurs when a transmitter sends a misleading GPS signal, causing navigation failures for the receiver antenna. In contrast, jamming involves blocking authentic GPS signals, leaving the aeroplane to navigate ‘blindly’ without guidance. Although jamming is more common, spoofing is a more serious threat that can lead to significant mishaps.
Reportedly, a group of professional pilots, flight dispatchers, schedulers, and controllers named OpsGroup had also flagged the issue.
As per media reports, the planes flying in the Middle Eastern airspace initially receive a “spoofed” GPS signal which is aimed at fooling the aircraft’s in-built system. This leads it to believe that the planes are flying miles away from their intended route. In many cases, the signal is strong enough to compromise the integrity of the aircraft’s system.
Subsequently, the inertial reference system (IRS) of the plane becomes unstable and it often loses all navigation capability.
The main cause for concern lies in the busy air corridor situated in Northern Iraq and Azerbaijan, with several reported incidents, particularly near Erbil. By September, a total of 12 distinct incidents had been reported, with the latest occurrence near Ankara, Turkey on November 20.
Although any culprit remains to be unidentified, it is believed that the occurrence of jamming and spoofing might be linked to the deployment of military electronic warfare systems in regions experiencing heightened regional tensions.
