Posted on 05/07/2010 10:25:36 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld
More than 8,000 deployed military GPS receivers experienced compatibility problems with the most recent upgrade to the timing and navigation constellation’s ground control segment, but the U.S. Air Force has implemented an interim fix while it validates a permanent solution.
When the Air Force upgraded the GPS Operational Control Segment Jan. 11, some military users began reporting their systems were losing GPS signals. The problem was isolated to a specific type of GPS receiver known as the Selective Availability Anti-Spoofing Module (SAASM) deployed in at least 86 U.S. weapons systems that were having trouble authenticating a new messaging format implemented as part of an upgrade, the Air Force disclosed in an April 30 posting on the Federal Business Opportunities website. The posting has since been removed.
The service on Feb. 12 contracted on a sole-source basis with the receivers’ manufacturer, Trimble Military and Advanced Systems of Sunnyvale, Calif., to help Air Force Space Command’s GPS Wing track down the affected hardware and implement a fix.
Trimble identified two models of SAASM receivers that were affected and developed a temporary software solution that was implemented in critical U.S. platforms, Air Force spokesman Joe Davidson said May 4 in an e-mailed response to questions. Trimble has now completed development of a permanent solution for one type of receiver and is close to a permanent solution for the other, Davidson said. Both solutions must pass through the GPS Wing’s security certification process.
(Excerpt) Read more at spacenews.com ...
Don’t think the Chinese aren’t exploiting this stuff and working on clone-like jamming programs for when the big war comes.
Most Defintely. They are starting to use GPS in their missiles
Is the current problem with the system’s hardware, or is there evidence of external manipulation (hacking)?
It’s a matter of encryption schemes and the receivers’ ways of decode them for super accurate positioning.
If the Chinese learn how to duplicate these kinds of problems, they can deny our use of smart weapons.
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