The navigation system of a plane carrying Ursula von der Leyen was disrupted by suspected Russian GPS jamming as the European Commission president attempted to land in Bulgaria on Sunday, forcing pilots to use paper maps.
The incident occurred as von der Leyen’s aircraft approached Plovdiv Airport in southern Bulgaria, with the “whole airport area GPS going dark”, according to officials briefed on the matter. After circling the airport for an hour, the pilot was forced to land manually using analogue maps.
“We can confirm there was GPS jamming but the plane landed safely,” European Commission spokesperson Arianna Podesta said on Monday. We have received information from Bulgarian authorities that they suspect this blatant interference was carried out by Russia.
The Bulgarian government confirmed that during the flight “the satellite signal transmitting information to the plane’s GPS navigation system was neutralised”. Air traffic services immediately offered “an alternative landing method using terrestrial navigation tools” to ensure flight safety.
When approached for comment, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told the Financial Times that their information was “incorrect”, denying Russian involvement in the incident.
The disruption comes amid a dramatic surge in GPS interference across Eastern Europe since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Bulgaria’s Air Traffic Services Authority confirmed there has been a “notable increase” in jamming and spoofing occurrences, which “disrupt the accurate reception of GPS signals, leading to various operational challenges for aircraft and ground systems”.
Von der Leyen was flying from Warsaw to Plovdiv to meet Bulgarian Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov and tour an ammunition factory as part of a four-day tour of EU frontline states. The trip was designed to discuss efforts to improve the bloc’s defensive readiness and express solidarity with nations bordering Russia and Belarus.
Speaking in Bulgaria shortly after the incident, but before it became public, von der Leyen delivered a stark warning about Russian President Vladimir Putin. “Putin has not changed, and he will not change. He is a predator. He can only be kept in check through strong deterrence,” she said.
European aviation experts have warned that Russia’s GPS jamming campaign poses significant risks to civilian aviation. Cyrille Rosay, a senior cybersecurity expert at the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), told the BBC that while GPS interference existed before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, it has significantly worsened.
“Since February 2022, we started to receive a lot of reports of spoofing. That was very new to us,” Rosay said. EASA now records “several thousand incidents” per year, he added.
The interference has forced airlines to take drastic measures. Finland’s flag carrier Finnair suspended daily flights to Estonia’s second-largest city, Tartu, for a month after two aircraft had to return to Helsinki due to GPS disruption. Pilots are reporting more than 100 incidents monthly, according to Finnair’s vice-president for flight operations, Juho Sinkkonen.
Estonia’s Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna was unequivocal about the source: “The source of interference is Russia. We have proof that it is coming from Russia, and Russia is violating all the international agreements.” He identified the sources near St Petersburg, Kaliningrad and Pskov.
Researchers have pinpointed specific locations responsible for the jamming. A team from Poland and Germany concluded that Russia was using a shadow fleet of ships and its Kaliningrad exclave to conduct operations. The interference has affected thousands of flights, with one March 2024 incident impacting 1,614 aircraft in just 48 hours.
The jamming campaign extends beyond aviation. Maritime traffic in the Baltic Sea has also experienced disruption, with vessels losing positional accuracy near Kaliningrad. NATO officials have warned that a commercial aviation crash resulting from GPS interference could trigger a military response.
Security experts debate whether the jamming represents deliberate hybrid warfare or collateral damage from Russia’s defensive measures against Ukrainian drones. NATO’s deputy air commander, British Air Marshall Johnny Stringer, accused Moscow of being “careless” about civilian impact.
“The Russians have a very different perspective on how to set the bar in using these kinds of offensive operations in the electromagnetic environment,” Stringer said.
The European Commission condemned the latest incident, stating that “threats and intimidation are a regular component of Russia’s hostile actions”. The spokesperson added this would “reinforce our unshakable commitment to ramp up our defence capabilities and support for Ukraine”.
Von der Leyen continued her tour on Monday, visiting Lithuania and Romania. Her plane departed Plovdiv without further incident after the Bulgaria visit.
The incident highlights the expanding nature of conflict between Russia and the West, with electronic warfare increasingly affecting civilian infrastructure far from active combat zones. As GPS interference continues to escalate, aviation authorities are working to develop alternative navigation systems and ensure pilots are prepared for GPS-denied environments.
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