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Australia should be concerned about recent reports of passenger aircraft having their GPS jammed by the “Chinese military”, according to an Australian professor specialising in electromagnetic waves.
Flinders University’s Samuel Drake said while there seems to be no immediate threat now, the situation could change without warning.
“The loss of the GPS signal is not a safety issue as aircraft have other more reliable and robust navigation systems on board,” he said.
“Unwarranted VHF communications from ‘persons purporting to represent the Chinese military’, on the other hand, needs to be considered carefully.
“Firstly, the pilots probably want to keep those communication channels open for emergency communications.
“Secondly, it is possible that a foreign military is conducting ‘electronic warfare’ exercises that may interfere with or damage communication systems and electronic systems on the commercial aircraft.
“Higher powered devices are involved in the jamming of civilian GPS receivers on commercial aircraft, such as the Qantas plane mentioned in media last week. It is relatively easy; all nation-states possess this capability.”
In Australia, it is illegal to operate, supply, offer to supply, or have a GPS jammer or equipment. Their use can result in up to eight years in prison or over $1 million in fines, according to the Australian Communications and Media Authority.
These types of low-powered devices will not interfere with aircraft navigation systems.
Qantas pilots have been issued a notice warning about “unwarranted VHF interference” from stations purporting to be Chinese military in the western Pacific and South China Sea area.
“In addition, Group aircraft have experienced GPS jamming suspected to originate from warships operating off the north-west shelf of Australia,” according to the notice warning.
The International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations has also reportedly released a statement that it has been “made aware of some airlines and military aircraft” being called over certain VHF numbers radio communication channels “by military warships in the Pacific region, notably South China Sea, Philippine Sea, East of Indian Ocean”, “provided vectors to avoid the airspace over the warship” or experienced interference to other global navigation satellite systems and radio altimeter systems.
