NATO warns of grave danger after suspected Russian GPS jamming of von der Leyen’s plane

NATO is treating suspected Russian interference with the global positioning system (GPS) of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s plane as a serious security threat, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte told The Associated Press.

“It is taken very seriously,” said Rutte. “I can assure you that we are working day and night to counter this, to prevent it, and to make sure that they will not do it again.” 

Her plane prepared to land at the Plovdiv Airport in Bulgaria on Aug. 31, but its navigation system went dark when GPS signals collapsed across the airport area. The disruption, widely interpreted as possible Russian jamming, temporarily left the aircraft without critical guidance, a scenario aviation experts warn could lead to catastrophic consequences.

Rutte described the jamming as part of Russia’s broader “hybrid threats” campaign, which has also included cutting undersea cables in the Baltic Sea, a plot against a German businessman, and a cyberattack on the UK National Health Service.

“I have always hated the words hybrid because it sounds so cuddly, but hybrid is exactly this jamming of commercial airplanes, with potentially disastrous effects,” he said.

Earlier reports have raised similar concerns. In March 2024, The Times reported that Russia may have jammed the GPS of a plane carrying the UK’s then-defense minister. In June, The Telegraph reported GPS interference by Russia on hundreds of British military flights. In early August 2025, Poland convened a Baltic Sea summit to address Russian influence over GPS systems.

“Neither Russia nor von der Leyen has commented publicly on the incident. The EU and NATO are separate entities with different sets of member countries, but Europe’s security is a vital issue for both,” AP writes.