What Is The Truth About GPS Tampering Conspiracy: Expert Insights (Image: X/Rajesh Sahu)
A major security concern has surfaced following the massive disruption of over 800 flights at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) earlier this week.
Preliminary investigations suggest a possible tampering of GPS signals, raising questions about whether this was a technical malfunction or a deliberate act of GPS spoofing.
According to officials familiar with the probe, the incident occurred between 6 and 7 November, around 7 PM, when pilots began receiving fake GPS signals, leading to erroneous location readings inside aircraft cockpits.
This resulted in sudden and confusing shifts in the aircraft’s on-screen positioning — runways appeared as fields, and altitude readings fluctuated, causing panic and forcing pilots to switch from auto-navigation to manual controls.
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The malfunction caused cascading delays across air traffic operations, impacting both domestic and international flights and leaving thousands of passengers stranded or rerouted.
Aviation authorities and cybersecurity agencies are now jointly investigating whether the disruption was caused by GPS spoofing, a form of signal manipulation where false data is transmitted to mislead aircraft systems.
Reacting to the alarming development, Congress leader Pawan Khera took to the social media platform X, writing: “This is a serious issue compromising the security of lakhs of passengers. This merits a thorough investigation, and the government needs to tell us why over 800 flights got disrupted last week.”
This is a serious issue compromising the security of lakhs of passengers. This merits a thorough investigation and the government needs to tell us why did over 800 flights get disrupted last week. https://t.co/jMwYAjO96M
— Pawan Khera 🇮🇳 (@Pawankhera) November 11, 2025
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While the possibility of external interference has not been ruled out, aviation experts have urged caution before drawing conclusions.
Speaking to Timeline, aircraft technician Muhammed Fahadh explained that the incident could very well be a technical error rather than a deliberate act.
“It may be a technical error or someone may have created fake GPS proofing, but I think most probably it’s a technical error from the airport systems,” Fahadh said.
“What actually happened is that the aircraft received the wrong location signal. For instance, if it were approaching Delhi airport, the GPS system may have indicated a different place altogether. When the aircraft’s GNS system receives an incorrect signal, the autopilot tries to approach that false position, leading to confusion. Such errors are rare, but they can occur due to system faults. GPS spoofing can happen too, but very, very rarely,” he added.
