Estonia blames Russia for GPS interference that forces Finnair to suspend flights

Finnish airline Finnair today suspended flights to Tartu, Estonia, due to interference with GPS signals over the Baltic Sea region that Estonian authorities blamed on Russia.

The airport at Estonia’s second city relies solely on a GPS signal for approach and landing.

On Thursday and Friday, two Finnair flights from Helsinki to Tartu were forced to turn back because of GPS interference — also called jamming.

“The GPS interference in Tartu forces us to suspend flights until alternative solutions have been established,” Finnair said today. The suspension will last until May 31.

Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna called the GPS jamming a “hybrid attack” and blamed Russia — saying he intends to raise the issue at the EU and NATO.

“Russia knows very well that the interference they are causing is very dangerous for our air traffic,” Tsahkna told Estonian public broadcaster ERR. He called it “a deliberate action that is disrupting our lives, putting people’s lives at risk.”

GPS jamming has been a regular occurrence in the Baltic region since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022, and Russia is considered the most likely culprit, although its responsibility has not been proven.

Planes can still fly safely without a GPS signal, but the jamming deprives pilots of an important source of geolocation.

“Most airports use alternative approach methods, but some airports, such as Tartu, only use methods that require a GPS signal to support them,” Jari Paajanen, Finnair’s director of operations, said in the statement.