GPS outage lasts three hours on RAF flight carrying Defence Secretary John Healey
For three hours in the air, passengers on an RAF jet carrying Defence Secretary John Healey found their smartphones and laptops suddenly unable to get online, while the aircraft’s GPS remained disabled and pilots reverted to an alternative navigation method to complete the journey. The Independent reported that those onboard were told the Dassault Falcon 900LX could still operate safely despite the loss of satellite navigation, and that the disruption persisted for the entire flight.[1]
The incident happened on May 21 on a route said to be near the Russian border, with The Independent describing it as GPS jamming and reporting that Russia was believed to be responsible.[1] The Guardian also reported the same core operational impact: passengers could not connect to the internet and pilots used a different navigation system because the GPS was disabled.[2]
The episode lands amid heightened concern across Europe about electronic warfare and interference as Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine grinds on. The confrontation has been building for years, including President Vladimir Putin’s decision on February 21, 2022, to recognize breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine, followed days later by sweeping U.S. sanctions on February 25, 2022.[1]
British officials did not publicly confirm who caused the disruption, but the reports underscore the vulnerability of aircraft systems and consumer devices to interference in contested airspace.[1][2]
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Sources (2)
Published May 21, 2026
Synthesized from 2 sources