Russia is understood to have repeatedly tried to jam signals in an act of electronic warfare against RAF aircraft taking off from Cyprus.
Military intelligence sources said a “hostile state” had regularly attempted to interfere with satellite communications of the A400M transport aircraft leaving RAF Akrotiri while troops were on board.
The attacks could have prevented the pilot from knowing where the aircraft was or the direction it was flying in and potentially resulted in casualties. None of the attempts was successful. The only two hostile states close enough to try to jam the signals were Syria and Russia, with
Russia understood to be the only country capable of doing so.
A military intelligence source told
The Times: “Russia has been trying to jam planes taking off, which is all part of its sub-threshold activity.” Sub-threshold activity is where armed conflict is avoided but there is confrontation.
The source added: “This is an example of another state being hostile and reckless for no apparent reason. These are transport aircraft bringing in spare parts. It’s not like they are fighter jets.”
The global positioning system is a radio-navigation system that consists of satellites in orbit and a network of ground stations used for monitoring.
On Monday the “defence command” paper is due to be published, setting out cuts and investments to the military. This will include a plan for the military to operate more inside the “grey zone” between peace and war and attach a “cost” to such nefarious activity by adversaries. A defence source said: “This is about the resetting of the overt world of peace and war and moving to a more fluid world where our adversaries are.”
It is widely expected that all 14 C-130J Hercules aircraft, favoured by the SAS, will be grounded and the larger Airbus A400M will be used to convey troops.
Lieutenant-General Jim Hockenhull, chief of defence intelligence, said: “The future battlefield will not be defined by lines on maps. We will likely be confronted by state and non-state actors who will employ brinkmanship, threshold warfare, terrorism, proxies, coercion and economic warfare.” He said that the military would adapt its approach and “target our most vulnerable areas”.
There are concerns that Russia is exploring ways to disrupt other satellite communications, as well as building up anti-satellite space weapons. In July, the UK and US accused Russia of testing a weapon-like projectile in space that could be used to target satellites.
A defence source said: “Our space assets can be held at risk due to the development of anti-satellite weapons. If you want to disrupt financial transactions you just need to wipe out a satellite.”
Mercenary army growing
Russia has a global army of mercenaries that is “growing in influence” in poorer states, military chiefs believe (Larisa Brown writes). Intelligence has identified 12 groups that are secretly working for Moscow abroad. The shadowy Wagner group is one trying to further Russia’s aims.
Private contractors give the Kremlin a degree of deniability and make it difficult for the UK to respond to.
Britain believes that Russia has given Wagner fighter jets, transport planes and air defence missiles. A defence source said: “Russia can basically do what it likes without being held to account.”
The Russian government denies any involvement in Wagner.