Aviation safety measures focus on airport operations and preparedness for GNSS interference

The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom has updated the Finnish Plan for Aviation Safety (FPAS), a collection of prioritised actions to preserve and improve the strengths of the Finnish aviation sector and to manage associated risks.

One of the focus areas in the 2026 plan is safe operations at airports, particularly from the perspective of different stakeholders and their interaction. Another key focus is the impact of GNSS interference, including jamming and spoofing, on air transport, as well as measures to keep the associated risks under control.

“Due to the prevailing security situation, both unintentional and intentional threats may affect our aviation system. This requires continuous vigilance from all stakeholders,” emphasises Jarkko Saarimäki, Director-General at Traficom. 

The aviation system has been able to operate reliably despite continued disruption to satellite navigation. “Aviation has faced quite challenging times for some time now. From a safety perspective, both the authority and the stakeholders have demonstrated an excellent ability to respond to these challenges and to maintain the high level of aviation safety,” says Jukka Hannola, Director-General of Civil Aviation at Traficom.

Measures at system level and targeted by stakeholder group

The actions in the FPAS are binding on both Traficom and aviation stakeholders. They are based on the European Union Aviation Safety Agency’s (EASA) European Plan for Aviation Safety (EPAS 2026 Edition) and national aviation risk management.

The FPAS includes targeted measures for all aviation stakeholders, such as airlines, helicopter operators, airport operators, air navigation service providers, pilot schools, stakeholders in unmanned aviation and ground handling services.

“Aviation is a system of systems, where the role of each stakeholder group is essential to overall safety,” explains Finnish Aviation Safety Programme (FASP) Coordinator Heli Koivu.

Traficom organises targeted aviation events for different stakeholder groups and also hosts joint events for all stakeholders, including the annual Aviation Safety Forum. The 2026 forum will take place on 2 December 2026 under the theme “Safety is action – focusing on practical operations”. The main themes of the safety plan are also strongly reflected in the topics of these events.