FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
The GPS of the entire airport area was turned off...
A suspected Russian attack targeting Ursula von der Leyen disabled GPS navigation services at a Bulgarian airport and forced the European Commission president's plane to land using paper maps.
The plane carrying von der Leyen to Plovdiv on Sunday afternoon was deprived of electronic navigation aids as it approached the Bulgarian airport, three officials briefed on the incident said.
" The GPS of the entire airport area went off. After circling the airport for an hour, the pilot of the plane made the decision to land the plane manually using analog maps. It was undeniable interference ," one of the officials said.
So-called GPS jamming and spoofing, which distorts or prevents access to the satellite navigation system, has traditionally been used by the military and intelligence services to protect sensitive locations, but has been increasingly used by countries such as Russia as a means of disrupting civilian life.
EU governments have warned that growing GPS jamming, blamed on Russia, risks causing a major air disaster by essentially blinding commercial aircraft mid-flight.
GPS jamming incidents have increased significantly in the Baltic Sea and Eastern European states near Russia in recent years, affecting planes, ships and civilians who use the service for daily navigation.
Von der Leyen was flying from Warsaw to the central Bulgarian city to meet with the country's Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov and visit a munitions factory. The commission president was on a tour of EU frontline states to discuss efforts to improve the bloc's defense preparedness in response to Russia's war in Ukraine.
Bulgaria has been one of the most important European suppliers of military equipment to Ukraine, first of legacy Soviet-era weapons in the early months of the war, and now of artillery and other products produced by the country's vast defense industry. Von der Leyen left Plovdiv on the same plane without incident after the visit./ Adapted from "Pamphlet" by "FinancialTimes"
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