US military GPS jamming exercise suspected of contributing to civilian plane crash in New Mexico — medevac flight lost signal before flying into a mountain, killing everyone onboard
A medevac flight in New Mexico suffered from GPS interference due to activities by nearby U.S. military units. Although it didn't directly cause the plane to crash, it added to the stress and workload of the pilots, causing them to miss one crucial piece of information.
A medevac flight from Roswell Air Center to Sierra Blanca Regional Airport in New Mexico crashed into a mountain during its final approach due to suspected GPS jamming by the U.S. military, according to the NTSB's preliminary report. The flight crew experienced navigation issues consistent with the effects of GPS jamming, although it did not directly cause the crash.
The incident occurred under dark, moonless night conditions, making it difficult for the pilots to visually navigate, and heightened stress levels. The plane took off and climbed to altitude, then requested an instrument flight rules (IFR) clearance. Shortly after, the pilots reported losing GPS capability. They were then given new heading instructions by air traffic control (ATC).
At approximately 12:07 am, GPS instruments on the Beechcraft King Air twin-engine plane resumed normal recording, and the pilots reported visual contact with Ruidoso, the town nearest to Sierra Blanca. However, they had missed a mountain range between them and their destination, causing a fatal controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) accident.
This case raises concerns about the potential impact of military GPS jamming exercises on civilian flights, especially when operating under challenging conditions.
Written by urgent.news from Tom's Hardware's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
