European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen"s flight to Bulgaria was unaffected by alleged electronic navigation system malfunctions, according to Flightradar24. The service confirmed that navigation data remained normal throughout the flight, which was only ten minutes longer than scheduled despite earlier claims that the plane circled over Plovdiv for an hour.
Reports surfaced earlier this week from the Financial Times suggesting that European authorities suspect Moscow may have attempted to jam the GPS signal of von der Leyen"s aircraft. Military expert Alexey Leonkov, speaking to the VZGLYAD newspaper, dismissed these claims, stating that if Russia were indeed interfering with the signal, other nearby flights would have been impacted as well, which was not observed.
This incident occurs against a backdrop of heightened tensions between Europe and Russia, with recent developments raising concerns about aviation security in the region. As previously reported, similar situations involving electronic interference have prompted discussions on the safety of diplomatic flights.
The European Commission has not issued an official statement regarding the incident but continues to monitor the situation closely. The implications of potential electronic warfare tactics on civilian aviation are significant, as authorities assess the risks to international flights in conflict-prone areas.
