RAF plane carrying British Defence Secretary had its signal jammed near Russian border

(Patria) - An RAF (Royal Air Force) plane carrying British Defence Secretary John Healey had its signal jammed while flying near the Russian border earlier this week, the BBC reported.

John Healey was returning to the UK on Thursday after visiting British troops in Estonia when the incident occurred, first reported by The Times.

Russia is believed to be behind the attack, which meant pilots had to use a different navigation system as the plane's GPS was disabled during the three-hour flight.

The incident occurred a day after it emerged that two Russian warplanes had "repeatedly and dangerously" intercepted an RAF spy plane over the Black Sea last month.

It is not known if Healey was deliberately targeted, but the newspaper reported that the flight path was visible on aircraft tracking websites.

During his visit to Estonia, Healey spoke with members of the British forces who were participating in a NATO military exercise near the Russian border.

In a separate incident last month, a Russian Su-35 fighter jet approached a Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft close enough to trigger its emergency systems and disable the use of its autopilot.

A Su-27 jet also made six fly-pasts in front of the RAF aircraft, coming within six metres of its nose.

Healey praised the "outstanding professionalism" of the RAF crew during the "unacceptable" Russian fly-pasts, which the Ministry of Defence stated was the most dangerous Russian action since 2022, when a "rogue" pilot fired a missile at the Rivet Joint over the Black Sea.

In 2024, an RAF plane carrying then-Defence Secretary Grant Shapps had its GPS signal jammed while flying near Russian territory.