Advertisement

Finland says Russia could be jamming aircraft GPS systems

By Nicholas Sakelaris
NATO aircraft fly during military exercise Trident Juncture (TRJE18) over Trondheim, Norway. Photo by Gorm Kallestad/EPA-EFE
NATO aircraft fly during military exercise Trident Juncture (TRJE18) over Trondheim, Norway. Photo by Gorm Kallestad/EPA-EFE

Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Russians could be using GPS-jamming technology to interfere with aircraft in northern Finland, the country's prime minister said.

Anomalies detected in the Finnish Lapland could be the result of Russian interference and could endanger civil aviation safety, Prime Minister Juha Sipila said on YLE Radio Suomi Sunday.

Advertisement

"Let's just say that technology-wise it's relatively easy to disturb a radio signal transmitted across an open space," Sipila said. "It's possible that Russia was the cause of the disturbance, it's known to have such capabilities."

Sipila's remarks came as U.S. and other forces conducted the Trident Juncture military exercises in Norway. The NATO-organized exercise has 29 countries participating in the event, which began last month and runs to Nov. 23.

A spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin said the Kremlin knows "nothing" about the disruption of a GPS signal.

"There is a trend to blame all mortal sins on Russia," Dmitry Peskov said. "As a rule, these allegations are unfounded."

Russia has expressed concerns about Trident Juncture. Last week, a Russian fighter jet buzzed dangerously close to a U.S. reconnaissance flight over the Black Sea.

Advertisement

Similar interference has been detected before when there have been military exercises, which prompted officials to prepare counter measures.

"If it hadn't been taken into account in planning the exercise, the party responsible for the interference did NATO a service," political columnist Jukka Tarkka said in a blog post. "The defender must be able to take action also when faced with something unexpected. It's very likely that they had also prepared for interference. The only thing that's odd is if its effects weren't communicated to civil aviation in advance."

Latest Headlines