Russia jams signals of jet carrying UK defence secretary

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File image: President Vladimir Putin of Russia and UK PM Keir Starmer

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A British Royal Air Force plane carrying UK Defence Secretary John Healey had its signal jammed and GPS disabled when it flew near the Russian border last week, the defence ministry confirmed Monday.

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The Times newspaper first reported that the RAF jet had its signal knocked out as Healey was returning to the UK on Thursday after visiting British soldiers stationed in Estonia.

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The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed to AFP that the report was accurate, adding: “This is reckless Russian interference, but the RAF is well prepared to deal with this activity.”

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It did not confirm who was behind the incident and whether Healey’s plane was targeted on purpose.

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The incident disabled the plane’s GPS for the three-hour journey, forcing pilots to use alternative navigation systems, the newspaper reported.

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The Times, whose reporter was accompanying Healey, said electronic devices were unable to connect to the internet and parts of the dashboard malfunctioned.

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It comes after the MoD last week said two Russian jets “repeatedly and dangerously” intercepted a British surveillance aircraft over the Black Sea in April.

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Healey condemned that incident as “dangerous and unacceptable” behaviour by Russian pilots in international airspace, adding that it would not “deter the UK’s commitment to defend NATO, our allies and our interests from Russian aggression”.

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Officials said the Black Sea encounter was the most serious involving a UK Rivet Joint since 2022, when a Russian aircraft fired a missile near a British plane over the same region.

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Relations between Russia and the UK are in deep freeze, with Britain one of the staunchest backers of Ukraine since Moscow’s 2022 invasion.

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In 2024, an RAF plane carrying then-defence secretary Grant Shapps had its signal temporarily jammed near Russian territory on its return journey from Poland.

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