Australian Airline Qantas alerts pilots for possible communication disruption

The Australian airline Qantas has alerted its pilots about possible communication disruption from individuals purporting to be Chinese warships jamming GPS signals, according to Sky News Australia. The aircraft manufacturer, Qantas, stated in the statement that the pilots were informed of the interferences, which were discovered in the South China Sea and western Pacific.

Notwithstanding the warning, Sky News Australia reports that the pilots were informed that “no safety issues documented that pertain to this activity” had occurred. The term “very high frequency,” or VHF, refers to a range of radio waves between 30 and 300 megahertz (MHz).

Pilots were given instructions on what to do in these situations. The guidance stated that if the flight crew encountered interference, they should keep tracking using the assigned clearance, report the interference to the overseeing ATC authority.

“An Intelex Report must be produced with information about the incident or any other unexpected behaviour after landing.” This month, as reported in Sky News Australia, the International Federation of Air Line Association of Pilots confirmed in a statement that it had been informed that some airlines and military planes were being summoned over by warships.

Throughout the Pacific region, specifically in the South China Sea and the Philippine Sea, as well as East of the Indian Ocean, military vessels have been calling several airlines and military aircraft over 121.50 or 123.45, according to a statement from IFALPA. “In some instances, the planes were given directions to steer clear of the warship’s airspace. We have grounds to suspect that RADALT and GNSS may both be subject to interference.

“IFALPA is collaborating with IATA and the Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) to make sure that everyone is adhering to our policies and to avoid a repeat of this situation.” The incident occurred while China kept criticising the important AUKUS submarines agreement.

The trilateral security agreement between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States is known as AUKUS. According to Sky News Australia, Australia will purchase a fleet of eight nuclear-powered submarines as part of the trilateral cooperation, which is anticipated to cost between USD 268 billion and USD 368 billion.