Russia 'jamming signals' over RAF plane carrying Grant Shapps

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Russia allegedly jammed the signal of an RAF plane carrying Grant Shapps in an electronic attack described as "extremely irresponsible".

The plane's GPS signal was reportedly jammed for half an hour as it flew over the Russian territory of Kaliningrad, located between Poland and Lithuania.

The defense secretary was on board of an RAF Dassault 900LX Falcon jet, named Envoy. , returning from Poland on Wednesday at the time of the attack. The plane's flight path was visible to trackers.

The attack did not threaten the plane's security but prevented phones from connecting to the plane's WiFi. The plane was forced to use other navigation systems available to pilots.

A defense source said: "While the RAF is well prepared to deal with this, it still puts civilian aircraft at unnecessary risk and could potentially endanger people's lives. There is no excuse for this and it is completely irresponsible of Russia. p> (AFP via Getty)

Another source said it was “not unusual” for attacks of this nature to occur near Kaliningrad.

A door Downing Street spokesperson confirmed that the plane "experienced GPS jamming while flying near Kaliningrad."

They added: "This did not threaten the safety of the plane and it It's not uncommon for planes to experience GPS jamming near Kaliningrad, which is of course Russian territory. »

Mr. Shapps was returning from a visit to a military training site in Orzysz, in northeastern Poland, about 100 miles from Kaliningrad. He watched as troops participated in Steadfast Defender, NATO's largest military exercise since the Cold War. The exercises, which will run until May, involve around 90,000 troops from across the alliance, including British forces.

During his trip to Poland, Mr Shapps denounced “rumours sabre" by Vladimir Putin after the Russian leader. used an interview with state media to assert that his country was “ready” for nuclear war if the need arose. It's a...