DGCA looking into GPS spoofing over Delhi amid aviation safety concerns
Experts warn that any deliberate interference with GPS signals in the National Capital Region could pose a national security risk, given Delhi’s airspace proximity to strategic installations.
- Nov 6, 2025,
- Updated Nov 6, 2025 12:16 PM IST
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is collecting data on a series of “severe” GPS spoofing incidents that have affected aircraft flying over Delhi in the past week, senior officials confirmed to Business Today TV.
The interference has caused pilots to receive false navigation data, including incorrect aircraft positions and misleading terrain alerts, hence raising serious operational and security concerns.
The disruptions come at a sensitive time for Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), which has temporarily withdrawn the Instrument Landing System (ILS) for its main runway, 10/28, as part of its upgrade to Category III standards.
Without the ILS, pilots depend on Required Navigation Performance (RNP) systems that rely entirely on GPS signals. However, the spoofing beginning roughly 60 nautical miles from IGIA has disrupted RNP accuracy, leading to congestion and multiple flight diversions.
On Tuesday night alone, seven aircraft, including five IndiGo and two Air India flights, were diverted to Jaipur.
Experts note that spoofing differs from GPS jamming. While jamming blocks GPS signals altogether, often used by the military to protect sensitive assets, spoofing manipulates the signals to feed pilots false location data.
Such attacks have been increasingly reported in global conflict zones such as Ukraine, Turkey, and the Middle East.
Experts warn that any deliberate interference with GPS signals in the National Capital Region could pose a national security risk, given Delhi’s airspace proximity to strategic installations.
“If spoofing continues unchecked, it can compromise both aviation safety and the integrity of civilian navigation systems,” an ex-govt official who worked in the ministry of civil aviation shared.
The DGCA is expected to compile detailed data from airlines and air traffic controllers and if needed may escalate the matter to security agencies for investigation and countermeasure planning.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is collecting data on a series of “severe” GPS spoofing incidents that have affected aircraft flying over Delhi in the past week, senior officials confirmed to Business Today TV.
The interference has caused pilots to receive false navigation data, including incorrect aircraft positions and misleading terrain alerts, hence raising serious operational and security concerns.
The disruptions come at a sensitive time for Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), which has temporarily withdrawn the Instrument Landing System (ILS) for its main runway, 10/28, as part of its upgrade to Category III standards.
Without the ILS, pilots depend on Required Navigation Performance (RNP) systems that rely entirely on GPS signals. However, the spoofing beginning roughly 60 nautical miles from IGIA has disrupted RNP accuracy, leading to congestion and multiple flight diversions.
On Tuesday night alone, seven aircraft, including five IndiGo and two Air India flights, were diverted to Jaipur.
Experts note that spoofing differs from GPS jamming. While jamming blocks GPS signals altogether, often used by the military to protect sensitive assets, spoofing manipulates the signals to feed pilots false location data.
Such attacks have been increasingly reported in global conflict zones such as Ukraine, Turkey, and the Middle East.
Experts warn that any deliberate interference with GPS signals in the National Capital Region could pose a national security risk, given Delhi’s airspace proximity to strategic installations.
“If spoofing continues unchecked, it can compromise both aviation safety and the integrity of civilian navigation systems,” an ex-govt official who worked in the ministry of civil aviation shared.
The DGCA is expected to compile detailed data from airlines and air traffic controllers and if needed may escalate the matter to security agencies for investigation and countermeasure planning.