GPS is vulnerable to jamming—here’s how we might fix it
In September 2025, a Wideroe Airlines flight was trying to land in Vardo, Norway, which sits in the country's far eastern arm, some 40 miles from the Russian coast. The cloud deck was low, and so was visibility. In such gray situations, pilots use GPS technology to help them land on a runway and not the side of a mountain.
But on this day, GPS systems weren't working correctly, the airwaves jammed with signals that prevented airplanes from accessing navigation information. The Wideroe flight had taken off during one of Russia's frequent wargames, in which the country's military simulates conflict as a preparation exercise. This one involved an imaginary war with a country. It was nicknamed Zapad-2025-translating to West-2025"-and was happening just across the fjord from Vardo. According to European officials, GPS interference was frequent in the runup to the exercise. Russian forces, they suspected, were using GPS-signal-smashing technology, a tactic used in non-pretend conflict, too. (Russia has denied some allegations of GPS interference in the past.)
Without that guidance from space, and with the cloudy weather, the Wideroe plane had to abort its landing and continue down the coast away from Russia, to Batsfjord, a fishing village.