GPS/radio interference reported by Qantas pilots (NW shelf & wider Asia-Pacific)

In mid-March 2023, Qantas issued standing orders to its pilots after some of its aircraft experienced VHF radio interference and GPS jamming across the northwest shelf and the wider Asia-Pacific. According to the reporting, the airline told crews that aircraft had received transmissions on VHF from stations purporting to represent the Chinese military in the western Pacific and South China Sea, while separate GPS jamming was suspected to originate from warships operating off Australia's North West Shelf, a corridor used by routes toward Indonesia, Singapore and India.

In some cases, vessels calling on radio frequencies such as 121.50 or 123.45 reportedly issued vectors instructing aircraft to alter course to avoid flying over them. The International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations (IFALPA) confirmed similar interference over the South China Sea, the Philippine Sea and areas east of the Indian Ocean, and advised crews not to respond to such transmissions but to notify air traffic control and file reports. IFALPA also flagged potential interference to satellite navigation (GNSS) and radio altimeter systems as a greater concern than the VHF disruption. Qantas instructed pilots to continue flying their routes and said there had been no related safety events. The Australian and International Pilots Association said its members were trained to manage such issues safely. The attribution to Chinese warships rested on pilot and union reporting and was not officially confirmed by the Australian government.

The episode reflects a pattern of GNSS jamming and spoofing affecting civil aviation in contested maritime regions, where electronic interference around naval activity can degrade navigation and communications for commercial flights. While Qantas reported no safety incidents and VHF disruption is largely a nuisance, GPS jamming and radio altimeter interference pose more substantive risks, particularly during approach and landing. The attribution to Chinese warships is reported and assessed rather than officially confirmed, and should be treated as an unverified claim sourced to pilots and their union, consistent with broader hybrid-warfare concerns over the militarization of the electromagnetic spectrum.