John Healey says RAF jet lost GPS for 3 hours
john healey was on an RAF jet that lost its signal for the full three-hour flight near the Russian border on Thursday. Smartphones and laptops on board could not connect to the internet, and pilots switched to a different navigation system after the plane’s GPS was disabled.
Healey was returning to the UK after visiting British soldiers in Estonia. He later said: "I would like to pay tribute to the outstanding professionalism and bravery of the RAF crew who continued with their mission despite these dangerous actions," and "Let me be very clear: this incident will not deter the UK’s commitment to defend Nato, our allies and our interests from Russian aggression."
Healey in Tallinn
Before the flight home, Healey met Hanno Pevkur, the Estonian minister of defence, in Tallinn. They discussed long-term bilateral defence cooperation and its strategic expansion.
The flight also carried photographers and a reporter, and the aircraft remained safe despite the interference. The incident came after the Ministry of Defence said on Wednesday that two Russian jets had repeatedly and dangerously intercepted an RAF spy plane above the Black Sea last month.
Repeated RAF interference
The new disruption follows another case in March 2024, when an RAF plane carrying then-defence secretary Grant Shapps had its GPS signal jammed near Russian territory while heading back to the UK from Poland. That interference lasted about 30 minutes.
Healey also last month revealed that the UK had tracked three Russian submarines that loitered over critical undersea infrastructure in the North Atlantic for a month before they sailed away. The Ministry of Defence described the Black Sea encounter as the most dangerous Russian action against a British Rivet Joint aircraft since a plane fired a missile over the Black Sea in 2022.
The latest flight leaves Healey’s team with a clear operational lesson: RAF aircraft can still continue their mission when GPS is disabled, but they must be ready to shift navigation systems fast when flying close to Russian airspace.
