GPS jammed on the RAF jet carrying the UK defence secretary
21 May 2026 · Aircraft incident · Last updated 10 November 2026
An RAF jet carrying John Healey home from Estonia had its GPS jammed for the whole flight on 21 May 2026, The Guardian reported, citing The Times.
Source: GPSInterference.com, https://gpsinterference.com/reports/2026-05-21-healey-raf-jet-jammed. Free to reuse with this credit and a link.
What happened
A Royal Air Force Dassault Falcon 900LX carrying UK Defence Secretary John Healey home from a visit to British troops in Estonia had its GPS jammed for the whole three-hour flight on 21 May 2026, The Guardian reported, citing The Times.[1][2][3]
Passengers' phones and laptops could not connect to the internet and the pilots used a different navigation system; passengers were told the aircraft could still fly safely.[1]
The Guardian said Russia was thought to be behind the interference; it remains unclear whether the aircraft was deliberately targeted.[1][2]
What our map showed
Our map shows aircraft reporting low GPS position accuracy. It does not show who or what caused it. A day is a full UTC day, so short events can be diluted.
The flight's route and times weren't published, so this report shows the wider area for the whole UTC day.
- Affected share
- 88%
- High-interference hexagons
- 130 of 148
- 30-day average
- 72%
- About the same as the previous 30 days
Other areas checked
| Area | Day (UTC) | Share | High | 30-day average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Baltic, Latvia and Lithuania coast | 21 May 2026 | 77% | 128 of 167 | 62% |
By altitude
| Altitude | Measured hexagons | High | Share | 30-day average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| below 5,000 ft | 20 | 3 | 15% | 13% |
| 5,000–15,000 ft | 45 | 25 | 56% | 33% |
| 15,000–30,000 ft | 76 | 49 | 64% | 33% |
| above 30,000 ft | 107 | 97 | 91% | 76% |
Day by day
| Day (UTC) | Share |
|---|---|
| 14 May 2026 | 63% |
| 15 May 2026 | 70% |
| 16 May 2026 | 66% |
| 17 May 2026 | 71% |
| 18 May 2026 | 93% |
| 19 May 2026 | 94% |
| 20 May 2026 | 86% |
| 21 May 2026 | 88% |
| 22 May 2026 | 71% |
| 23 May 2026 | 66% |
| 24 May 2026 | 63% |
What others said
- The Guardian
Reported that the signal was jammed for the entire three-hour flight after the aircraft flew near the Russian border. - The Kyiv Independent
It remains unclear whether Russia purposefully targeted Healey's plane.
- The Register
Reported that the jet flew for three hours with its GPS disabled, citing a Times reporter on board. - Euractiv
Reported that the jet carrying the UK defence secretary had its signal jammed near Russia.
Context
- Region page: Estonia
- This day's page: 21 May 2026
- Possible causes: Conflict jamming
Sources
- The Guardian, Nadeem Badshah. GPS jammed on RAF jet carrying UK defence secretary close to Russian border, 24 May 2026.
- The Kyiv Independent, Martin Fornusek. UK defense secretary's plane hit by suspected Russian GPS jamming, 25 May 2026.
- The Register, SA Mathieson. Jammin' on UK defence secretary's jet as Russia blamed for GPS interference, 29 May 2026.
- Euractiv. Jet carrying UK defence secretary had signal jammed near Russia.
Cite this report
GPSInterference.com (2026). GPS jammed on the RAF jet carrying the UK defence secretary. Report, 10 November 2026, updated 10 November 2026. https://gpsinterference.com/reports/2026-05-21-healey-raf-jet-jammed. Data: adsb.lol ADS-B, method v2.BibTeX
@misc{gpsinterference_2026_05_21_healey_raf_jet_jammed,
author = {{GPSInterference.com}},
title = {GPS jammed on the RAF jet carrying the UK defence secretary},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {\url{https://gpsinterference.com/reports/2026-05-21-healey-raf-jet-jammed}},
note = {Report, updated 2026-11-10. Data: adsb.lol ADS-B, method v2}
}