(TheConservativeTimes.org) – GPS Spoofing is just one example of how electronic warfare is affecting aviation and could affect civilians as well. GPS Spoofing is a technology in which the signal is intercepted by a third party and incorrect information is sent back to the GPS device.
Victor Alegre, a commercial pilot, experienced this exact thing when he was up thirty-six thousand feet in the air and his GPS alerted him that he was a little under two thousand feet from the ground. He knew this was a mistake, but it surprised him as he’d never experienced anything like this before.
This particular experience aligned with data recorded by SkAI Data Services proving that multiple flights to Cairo and Beirut were spoofed.
Alegre shared the footage of the GPS which showed two separate sets of coordinates. One set was from the plane’s internal Inertial Reference System and one set was from the spoofed GPS. The GPS showed that the plane was above Cairo, but it was still two hundred miles away.
“It was unbelievable, you know that you are cruising at 36,000 feet, and the highest mountain is 20,000 feet, so you realize that this was a spoof,” Alegre said.
Even in the video, you can hear the alert say, “Terrain ahead, pull up.” This indicated that they were warning of a collision with the terrain, which was inaccurate. Alegre said, “It is not a big issue, as long as the system disregards the spoofed GPS position.” However, he did say that this could be difficult and dangerous for planes that rely on GPS to navigate.
Benoit Figuet, co-founder of SkAI Data Services, said, “The Israel region is by far the most impacted by GPS spoofing.”
The primary use of this is for warfare but this could easily affect pilots, both commercial and civilian.
Figuet said, “The inaccuracy introduced by spoofing into the GPS also affects altitude estimates. It can trigger false Ground Proximity Warnings, which are critical safety alerts that warn pilots when their aircraft is too close to the ground or an obstacle.”
Copyright 2024, TheConservativeTimes.org
