Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport faced an unusual and serious problem on Wednesday when several flights experienced GPS spoofing, a type of cyber interference that sends fake satellite signals to mislead navigation systems. The issue affected aircraft approaching Runway 10/28, one of Delhi’s main and busiest runways, causing confusion for pilots and forcing many flights to delay or divert.
This was the first known GPS spoofing case in Delhi’s airspace, which immediately triggered alerts across airlines, air traffic controllers, and aviation authorities. Pilots had to switch to traditional ground-based landing systems like the Instrument Landing System (ILS) to land safely. The incident caused operational delays and raised serious concerns about aviation cybersecurity in India.
GPS spoofing happens when someone sends out fake satellite signals that confuse GPS receivers into showing false location, altitude, or timing data. In simple words, it tricks an aircraft’s navigation system into believing it’s somewhere else in the sky.
Cyber attackers use special equipment to broadcast counterfeit signals that look identical to genuine satellite transmissions. These signals override the real ones, leading the aircraft’s computer to miscalculate its position. When this happens during a landing approach, it can be extremely dangerous because even a small error in altitude or direction can cause major confusion.
Drifting or false coordinates make pilots believe they are off-course or too high or low, forcing them to make sudden corrections. In extreme situations, it can lead to loss of control, especially if weather conditions are poor or visibility is low.
GPS spoofing has often been reported in military conflict zones, such as:
The Black Sea region
West Asia and the Middle East
Areas affected by electronic warfare
However, it is extremely rare in civilian regions like India, which makes the Delhi incident a serious cause for concern.
The GPS spoofing incident specifically affected flights using Runway 10/28, which is critical for winter operations due to wind patterns and visibility conditions. According to reports, the spoofed signals corrupted the Required Navigation Performance (RNP) system, a GPS-based system that helps aircraft perform precise landings.
As a result, aircraft approaching Delhi showed wrong positional data on their cockpit screens. Pilots suddenly saw mismatched altitude or direction readings, which made it unsafe to depend on GPS during the landing approach.
To avoid accidents, pilots immediately switched to ground-based landing aids such as the ILS (Instrument Landing System), VOR (VHF Omnidirectional Range), or visual approaches, which rely on radio and optical signals instead of satellites.
This unexpected shift created a chain reaction of delays:
Several Air India and Vistara flights had to be diverted to nearby airports.
Pilots approaching Delhi were warned repeatedly through ATIS (Airport Terminal Information Service) broadcasts to stay alert and avoid GPS-based approaches.
The air traffic congestion increased as more aircraft circled in the sky, waiting for clearance to land.
The problem was worse when winds blew from the east because that direction required landings on Runway 10/28—the same runway affected by spoofing.
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Once the spoofing incident was detected, Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) and aviation authorities quickly launched corrective actions. Airlines were instructed to temporarily stop using GPS-based landing procedures and rely only on ground-based systems.
Key steps taken included:
Broadcasting cautionary messages via the ATIS system.
Accelerating the installation of a new ILS system on Runway 10/28, expected to become operational by November 27.
Conducting trial flights (such as by IndiGo) to verify the new landing aids and lighting systems.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and other aviation safety regulators also began an official investigation to understand where the spoofed signals came from and how they interfered with civilian airspace.
GPS spoofing poses major risks to aviation safety because modern aircraft depend heavily on satellite signals for:
Navigation and routing
Timing coordination between aircraft and air traffic control
Autopilot and approach systems during landing
When GPS data is corrupted, it affects all of these systems at once. Aircraft may wrongly believe they are off their intended path, leading pilots to make abrupt corrections that can destabilize the flight. Incorrect altitude readings are particularly dangerous during landing, where every few feet matter.
Moreover, GPS spoofing can impact collision avoidance systems, communication timing, and even airport coordination. While Indian pilots are trained to handle such emergencies by switching to traditional systems, not every region in the world is prepared for such attacks.
Experts warn that such disruptions highlight the growing cybersecurity vulnerabilities in aviation, especially as more aircraft and airports rely on digital navigation tools.
Preliminary investigations suggest that the spoofing signals near Delhi might not have originated in India at all. Experts believe they likely drifted from conflict zones in West Asia, where electronic warfare systems are used to jam or manipulate GPS signals to protect military assets.
Atmospheric conditions can sometimes carry these corrupted signals up to 2,500 kilometres away. In previous cases, spoofing incidents in Turkey, Russia, and Ukraine have also affected civilian flights far beyond their borders.
If confirmed, this would mean the Delhi incident was a spillover effect of regional electronic warfare activity—showing how modern conflicts can indirectly impact civilian air safety in peaceful countries.
The DGCA and Indian aviation authorities are now working to strengthen satellite navigation monitoring and train pilots to identify spoofing signs more quickly. There are also plans to upgrade radar and communication systems to detect false signals early.
International cooperation is expected with global aviation bodies to share data and prevent similar disruptions. The event has served as a wake-up call for India’s aviation sector to take cyber-aviation risks as seriously as physical threats.
Experts say GPS spoofing incidents like this one prove how deeply connected the digital world is. Even when a country is not involved in a conflict, its skies can still be affected by the technological fallout of warfare elsewhere.
As the investigation continues, one thing is clear: protecting the skies now requires not just air traffic control, but also cyber control—ensuring that invisible fake signals never again mislead real aircraft.
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