Aircraft navigation system disruptions surge by 175% in 2024 – IATA 

GPS spoofing incidents also spiked by 500% during the same period.

The data was obtained from the IATA Incident Data Exchange (IDX), which was recently published on IATA’s website.

The report noted that while backup systems support aviation safety when Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) are compromised, these incidents still pose serious risks to civil aviation. IATA identified Türkiye, Iraq, and Egypt as the most affected regions, raising safety concerns.

IATA’s Director General, Willie Walsh, expressed alarm over the growing threat, stating, “Reports of GNSS interference—including signal disruptions, jamming, and spoofing—surged between 2023 and 2024. Interference rates increased by 175%, while GPS spoofing incidents spiked by 500%.”

He emphasized the need for immediate steps by governments and air navigation service providers to stop this practice, improve situational awareness, and ensure that airlines have the necessary tools to operate safely in all areas.

The sharp rise in GNSS interference incidents formed part of a broader aviation safety report published by IATA for 2024.

The all-accident rate stood at 1.13 per million flights, better than the five-year average of 1.25 but worse than the 1.09 recorded in 2023. There were seven fatal accidents in 2024, up from one in 2023, resulting in 244 fatalities compared to 72 the previous year.

The report also provided a regional breakdown of safety performance.

North America recorded 12 accidents, with the all-accident rate improving from 1.53 per million sectors in 2023 to 1.20 in 2024, and no fatalities since 2020.

The Asia-Pacific region had seven accidents, raising its rate to 1.04 per million sectors, although it remained below the five-year average of 1.10.

Europe recorded nine accidents, slightly increasing the all-accident rate to 1.02 per million sectors. North Asia had one accident, maintaining a low rate of 0.13 per million sectors, with no fatalities reported.

Latin America and the Caribbean saw five accidents, raising the all-accident rate from 0.73 in 2023 to 1.77 in 2024, with an increase in fatality risk to 0.35. Tail strikes were the most common incident in the region.

IATA’s report also highlighted that tail strikes and runway excursions were the most frequent accidents globally, underlining the need for enhanced safety measures during take-off and landing. Despite the rise in interference threats, the industry maintained a low fatality risk of 0.06, below the five-year average of 0.10.

While aviation continued to be one of the safest modes of transport, IATA emphasized the need for coordinated global action to address the escalating GNSS interference issue.