Check-in system issue triggers delays for several airlines in India a day after Centre confirms GPS spoofing

A technical disruption in third-party check-in systems triggered delays across several airlines on Tuesday, Air India said, as carriers worked to stabilise operations and limit passenger inconvenience.

Air India stated that its teams were working to maintain a smooth experience for travellers while services were gradually restored. The airline cautioned that some flights could still face delays until the systems fully stabilise and advised passengers to check their flight status before leaving for the airport.

The airline later said that the third-party system has been fully restored, and check-in at all airports is functioning normally. “All our flights are operating as per schedule,” it added.

IndiGo also saw delays, though sources said these were due to operational reasons.

The latest incident comes shortly after widespread delays on November, when nearly 800 flights were held up at Delhi airport.

The combination of repeated operational disruptions and reports of navigational interference has raised concerns about aviation safety and system resilience, even as authorities and airlines maintain that essential operations continue without direct impact.

What the Centre said about GPS spoofing

On Monday, the Union government acknowledged multiple instances of GPS spoofing near Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport. It clarified that despite the digital interference reported by several sources, flight operations remained unaffected.

GPS spoofing constitutes a sophisticated cyber-malpractice where counterfeit satellite signals are broadcast to fundamentally deceive aircraft GPS receivers. Unlike jamming, which merely blocks signals, spoofing actively feeds the system incorrect coordinates, causing it to compute false position and timing data and misread the aircraft’s true location. This alarming technique undermines the reliability of GPS data, a vital element for navigation.