GPS vulnerabilities have been widely reported in the press. What steps have been taken to back up GPS use in U.S. critical infrastructure?
Jules McNeff
“President Biden on April 30 issued a National Security Memorandum on Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience. GPS plays a vital role in the operation of critical infrastructure, and some sectors are considering their own backups. Other than conducting studies and meetings to admire the problem, the federal government has done virtually nothing to provide a comprehensive answer. In fact, the government is now dismantling the Loran system, though enhanced Loran (eLoran) is a viable and affordable GPS backup, specifically recommended for use by prior U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Department of Homeland Security Deputy Secretaries. Given the vital role PNT and GPS play, it’s a mystery why such a viable solution is simply ignored.”
— Jules McNeff
Overlook System Technologies
Will GPS remain the Gold Standard of space-based PNT services for the foreseeable future?
“GPS led the emergence and growth of a global space-based PNT service enterprise and has been the Gold Standard since its inception. The U.S. Department of Defense and Air Force (now Space Force) have maintained that standard through stable, transparent, and consistent policies and continuous performance improvements for the services it provides to all users. Now, in the face of foreign competition, hostile threats, budgetary pressures, reorganizations and management fragmentation, dilution of corporate memory, and inconsistent leadership support, those policy and performance foundations are in danger of eroding. The outcome for GPS and its future in the global PNT Enterprise is purely in the hands of our federal leadership today.”
— Jules McNeff
Overlook System Technologies
The post EAB Q&A: GPS use in US infrastructure, PNT services first appeared on GPS World.
