Government ‘chose not to put defences’ on plane carrying Shapps which Russia subjected to jamming attack
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Government ‘chose not to put defences’ on plane carrying Shapps which Russia subjected to jamming attack

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The RAF plane that suffered a jamming attack by Russia while Grant Shapps onboard was with out key protections due to limitations on authorities spending.

Russia is believed to have jammed the sign of an RAF plane carrying Grant Shapps in an digital attack which was described as “wildly irresponsible” earlier this week.

The GPS sign of the plane was mentioned to have been interfered with for half an hour whereas it handed the Russian territory of Kaliningrad, which sits between Poland and Lithuania.

The defence secretary was aboard an RAF Dassault 900LX Falcon jet, named Envoy, on the best way again from Poland on Wednesday when the attack passed off. The plane’s flight path was seen to trackers.

However, the plane was not fitted with protecting programs due to a decent defence price range in place when the jet was put into motion in 2022.

The authorities selected not to give the brand new jets elements akin to anti-missile jammers, jam-proof communications or military-standard avionics on the time.

The Defence Secretary The Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP and his Team aboard an RAF Envoy IV CC Mk1

(Cpl Tim Hammond/UK MOD © Crown copyright 2024)

Two Dassault 900LX Falcon plane changed the previously used fleet of BAe146 in 2022. The predecessor was fitted with the related safety programs however these have been not included on the brand new jets due to price range cuts.

However, there have at all times been plans in place to improve the jets to embrace navy protections from 1 April 2024. In December 2023, this plan appeared to have been set in movement when a young discover price up to an estimated £150m was issued.

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson mentioned: “As announced in 2022, the Envoy aircraft are being upgraded to full military and operational capability.

“It’s not unusual for aircraft to experience GPS jamming near Kaliningrad and at no time was the safety of the aircraft threatened.”

(PA Wire)

According to The Times, the RAF needed to have the planes upgraded this yr however this has been pushed again to as late as 2026.

The attack on Wednesday did not threaten the security of the plane however left telephones unable to join to the plane’s WiFi. The plane was compelled to use different navigation programs obtainable to the pilots.

With the elevated use of drones from each Russia and Ukraine throughout Moscow’s invasion, digital warfare akin to jamming has taken on a better significance.

Ben Wallace, who was defence secretary on the time the choice on the protecting measures on the planes was made, defended the choice.

He instructed The Times on Friday: “The RAF is already overspent. I didn’t add the suite of extras because it would have meant taking millions away from military programmes to spend on a vanity project.

“The planes are never going to fly to hostile areas and if ministers need to then they switch to military lift. There are many more military platforms that need protection than a VIP jet. This is completely the wrong priority.”

However, Tim Ripley, editor of the information web site Defence Eye, hit out on the resolution and instructed the paper: “These critical aircraft, which are used to fly members of the royal family, government ministers and service chiefs on high-profile missions, are effectively defenceless until protection systems are fitted.”

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