U.S. Military's GPS Reliance Makes A Cheap, Easy Target

Wall Street Journal | September 24, 2002 | By Anne Marie Squeo, Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

[WILLIALAL]

U.S. Military's GPS Reliance Makes A Cheap, Easy Target

By Anne Marie Squeo, Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

The hugely successful satellite-based technology that has enabled a growing number of U.S. bombs to hit their targets may be vulnerable to a kind of jammer available through the Internet for $39.99.

That could mean potential problems in any invasion of Iraq. In recent months, the Pentagon has stepped up orders for precision-guided bombs that use Global Positioning System satellites to hit targets with pinpoint accuracy, and is expected to rely on them for surgical strikes on Saddam Hussein's military infrastructure.

Bombs that use GPS-guidance systems were employed heavily in the U.S. campaign in Afghanistan. Air Force officials estimate 95% of Boeing's Joint Direct Attack Munitions landed within 10 to 30 feet of their targets, well above performance thresholds originally set for the weapons.

But with Iraq expected to force the U.S. to fight in the tight spaces of Baghdad -- as opposed to the expansive desert where most clashes took place during the Gulf War -- highly accurate weapons could mean the difference between hitting a hospital and a military building. But the more reliant the U.S. has become on GPS over the past decade, for both military and civilian use, the more people have developed systems that can misdirect or even stymie the technology.

GPS "jammers," now available via the Internet for as little as $39.99, can easily interrupt the signal coming from the satellite system in a local area. At the Paris Air Show in 1999, a Russian company called Aviaconversia demonstrated a 4-watt GPS jammer, weighing about 19 pounds, capable of denying GPS reception for more than 100 miles. (By comparison, most hair dryers today have at least 18 watts of power.)

That has caught the attention of military officials and politicians alike. "We believe Saddam Hussein has GPS-jamming capability and that he will use it," says Rep. Joseph Pitts (R., Penn.).

He is co-chairman of the Electronic Warfare Working Group, whose members include 25 congressmen who have been studying GPS vulnerability, among other issues. "While we do not know the extent of our vulnerability, there is evidence to suggest that GPS jamming can significantly inhibit precision targeting," Mr. Pitts added. One congressional staffer noted it is also possible to "spoof" the system, or provide incorrect satellite readings that could misdirect a weapon.

Conceived by the military in the late 1970s, GPS is a constellation of 24 satellites that circle the globe twice a day, continuously beaming radio signals that provide timing and other information to anyone with a receiver. Air Force Col. Douglas Loverro, who oversees the program, likens it to "rainwater." But the signals travel 11,000 miles from satellite to Earth's surface, making them so weak by the time they arrive that a single Christmas tree light is about 1,000 times as bright.

The current GPS satellites emit two signals -- one dedicated to the military and another that has been made available to commercial users around the world, including as a timing device for big computerized networks such as telecommunications and transportation systems.

The military signal is configured so it is more difficult to interrupt. But the problem is that the military uses the commercial signal, which is more readily available, to "find" the military one. And while some efforts are under way to develop technology that enables aircraft to access the military signal directly, an Air Force spokesman said that isn't being done now.

"It turns out that intentional jamming is far more of a problem for the military than civilian users," says Col. Loverro.

Military officials refuse to say whether GPS signals have been jammed in battle and what specific fixes are being put in place, citing the classified nature of such information. They admit that concerns about the system's vulnerability are taking on increased prominence, especially as they relate to Iraq.

"Everyone knows how successful these [JDAM] weapons are so we know that they are going to try to take them away from us," says Richard Walley, chief of program development for the Pentagon's JDAM program office. Both the Navy and Air Force use JDAMs.

The only bona fide fix is strengthening signal power. Such efforts are under way, with the Air Force planning three stages of upgraded satellites over the next 10 to 15 years. The launch of these spacecraft has been delayed in part because the current fleet has lasted longer than expected. Technical challenges and budgetary decisions have also played a role in the delays.

-- Greg Jaffe contributed to this article.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

Electronic Countermeasures are only to be expected in warfare.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

most hair dryers today have at least 18 watts of power

Something of an understatement, I'd say . . . by orders of magnitude

[El Gato]

So much disinformation. GPS is inherently a spread spectrum system, and those are often tough to jam. The miltary receivers and antennaes, particularly those on aircraft and guided weapons, are not the same as the hand held one's you can buy at WalMart for $129.99.

Even if they can jam GPS for a while, they'll find their Jammers, which must radiate much of the time to be effective, triangulated and taken out, with artillery or dumb bombs (maybe of the hyperbaric or FAE type), or guided on by HARMS and taken out even more quikly.

[dasboot]

I'd say the counter-counter measure is ready for use, or they wouldn't put this out there. Send a 500lb bomb to home in on that Acme GPS Jammer. Cyote never learns. BEEPBEEP.

[11B3]

Thanks to the author, Saddam's henchmen are now scurrying about trying to get as many of those devices as possible. OTOH, if a JADAM happens to miss a tank sitting next to a hospital bacause it had the GPS signal jammed, I'd say that's the Iraqi people's problem - not ours. Of course we could turn Baghdad into Grozny using B-52s in ArcLight runs, which would also make this article's concerns quite moot.

All their oil, and all their camels belong to us.

[dd5339]

This is why the folks calling in the supporting arms should be required to learn how to use a map and compass as well as the new high tech wonder gizmo's.

Semper Fi

[Straight Vermonter]

Wild Weasels to the rescue!!!

[11B3]

The article is referring to the guidance systems on the ordnance - not the FOs ability to find his own coordinates. (Can you imagine having a GPS on a land-nav course? 2LTs would still get lost nearly everywhere though.)

[BillM]

Aircraft use combination INS and GPS. I imagine that small low-power inertial sensors can also be fitted into the device. When the GPS fails, the INS can be very accurate too.

[Paleo Conservative]

Even if they can jam GPS for a while, they'll find their Jammers, which must radiate much of the time to be effective, triangulated and taken out, with artillery or dumb bombs (maybe of the hyperbaric or FAE type), or guided on by HARMS and taken out even more quikly.

Hopefully the jammers are not unattended.

[dasboot]

More stuff we'd like the Iraqis to know:

1-Night-vision devices can't "see" you when you carry an umbrella covered in tinfoil.

[dd5339]

We used to have LT's get lost in areas that they were familiar with. The CO once put a new LT in charge of getting the water to the company after a long hump to an assault. The LT got lost and we went thirsty for a long time.

Semper Fi

[dasboot]

2-Leaving all the lights on in Bhagdad will render laser-guided munitions inoperable.

[Bombard]

Good point. Turn a jammer on and get a HARM down the pipe. At four watt power these jammers would be dead meat. Also the GPS was built with this in mind and would jump to another freq quicker than a person could blink. The US Military is not dumb. ON TO BAGHDAD!!!!!

[dasboot]

#-The international sign for surrender is an upraised middle finger.

[UB355]

most hair dryers today have at least 1800 watts of power

[Deguello]

(Sigh) Oh well, we'll just have to carpet bomb.

[Poohbah]

Hmm.

GPS receivers can locate the emitter in space and determine it's BELOW them, and switch to home-on-jam or use the emitters ABOVE them.

INS can backstop a GPS.

This is such a stupid article.

[ReaganIsRight]

Shows what a loser the writer is. 7W is just a small nightlite.

Reminds me of liberals who told their wives/girlfriends that their dick was 6", but was really only about 2".

Ever wonder why women can't navigate?

[albee]

"All their oil, and all their camels belong to us."

Minor Correction....

All their oil, and all their camels ARE belong to us.

[taxcontrol]

2LTs would still get lost nearly everywhere though

Man you got that right!!!

My new LT thought he could walk on water 'cause he was a ring knocker. Since I was the Company 'expert' on land nav, my CO had me set up three test courses.

The first course was 5 points and to be done during the day and started from a known location. The next course also involved 5 points but started from a random unknown location (dropped off before the dawn, course started after morning chow). The last course was 3 points and a night nav.

The newbie LT couldn't even make the first course. That boy had NO sense of direction. After the CO had me give him 6 PRIVATE lessons, the CO (and I) just gave up on him and told him to have the closest sergeant handle the nav.

It was rather sad actually.

[Thud]

FedBuster!

[patent]

I'd say the counter-counter measure is ready for use, or they wouldn't put this out there. Send a 500lb bomb to home in on that Acme GPS Jammer. Cyote never learns. BEEPBEEP.

We all know Saddam has no issues with killing his own people to stay in power. If he can really do this he will be putting military installations next to schoolyards, and putting the jammer on the school.

If we intentionally drop a 500 pounder on a school just to take out a jammer, Saddam wins. It may be his fault, but the outcry over here will be quite loud anyway.

patent  +AMDG

[WilliamWallace1999]

I can also tell you for a fact that our military is already well aware of GPS jamming and actively participates in it. I bought one of those fancy GPS systems for my laptop with a navigation program. It was VERY coool to watch the little arrow move across the map as the Bounder was rolling down the highway. As we passed the Pensacola NAS is went totally beserk and the system thought I was in Iowa for about four to five miles. It then came back on-line and put me right back on I-10 headed east. I am GLAD my military doesn't tell me everything.

[MortMan]

Not all LTs lack such skills, gents. I wasn't the unit land-nav expert, but I damn well knew how to read a map and use a lensatic compass. After all, one must be able to call in the artillery when necessary.

My biggest gripe with most LTs (especially butterbars) was that they thought they knew everything - doubly so with ring-bangers. My E5 brother made sure during my ROTC days to disabuse me of that notion:-)

(BTW - I "grew up" from lieutenanthood and got out as a Captain)

[SauronOfMordor]

Even if they can jam GPS for a while, they'll find their Jammers, which must radiate much of the time to be effective, triangulated and taken out, with artillery or dumb bombs (maybe of the hyperbaric or FAE type), or guided on by HARMS and taken out even more quikly.

If they can mass-produce a decent unit for $100, for the cost of a tank they can put 100,000 of them all over the landscape. We'd run out of HARMs long before we took out all their emitters

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

The GPS principle wouldn't require satellites as such; four ground-based but reasonably widely spaced (and surveyed by GPS or laser theodolite) time transmitters ought to provide enough data for bomb navigation to a known range and azimuth from a surveyed site. Such ground transmitters could be made more powerful than the GPS satellites, and would operate on a demand basis to save energy.

[daviddennis]

So take out the school during the night when nobody's there.

D

[daviddennis]

So take out the school during the night when nobody's there.

D

[taxcontrol]

Ok, your right, not ALL Lt's are hopeless.

My first Lt, (when I was PFC) was a music major ROTC graduate (barely). Seems he either made someone mad or scored low enough to get assigned rather than get the Reserve assignment he wanted. Anyway I can remember his first speach.

"I don't know why I'm here or how to do my job. You guys have got to show me the ropes and until I know what to do - SFC Silvas is in charge."

After that, the guys decided to take this Lt under our wings and get him squared away. Took a little while but he turned out to be one of the best officers I ever served under. Hated to see him get his bars 'cause that meant new orders back stateside.

[SamAdams76]

There's a reason why GPS products are available on the commercial market. They AREN'T the same thing! Whoever thinks they are going to disrupt the U.S. military with a $39.99 device are in fantasyland.

[demlosers]

My answers: ALQ-119, ALQ-141, ALQ-99, ALQ -135 jammer pods; EC-130 Compass Call; LGB's; AGM-65 IR; AGM-88's; AGM-45; AGM-78; EA-6B Prowlers; Chaff...

This article is much ado about Nothing.
What was that? A Radio Shack $9.99 or $39.99 jammer?
HAHAHaha......

[Flashman_at_the_charge]

Surely that's just a matter of frequency but I would think this scenario has already been anticipated. I wouldn't underestimate the inventiveness of the enemy though.

[Leisler]

GPS allows LT's to get lost faster and further, and with more confidence.

[Tom Bombadil]

Are there still f4 weasles out there?

[Straight Vermonter]

re there still f4 weasles out there?

The F-4s were retired in '96. Wild Weasel however is a mission designation rather than a plane designation. The F-16C now has the US Air Force's Wild Weasel role.

Wild Weasel

The F-16CJ/DJ Block 50D/52D have the HARM avionics/Launcher Interface Computer (ALIC) resulting in a full autonomous employment capability of the HARM missile. This capability adds the SEAD (Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses) mission to the already extensive list of missions the F-16 is capable to perform.

The aircraft features full integration for the advanced AGM-88 HARM II and Shrike anti-radiation missiles, a Lockheed Martin Pave Penny laser ranger pod and the Texas Instruments (now Raytheon) AN/ASQ-213 HTS (HARM Targeting System). The pod is mounted on the starboard intake hardpoint and contains a super-sensitive receiver that detects, classifies, and ranges threats and passes the information to the HARM and to the cockpit displays. With the targeting system, the F-16CJ/DJ has full autonomous HARM capability. The HTS pod can be omitted however - in that case, RC-135 Rivet Joint aircraft support the F-16 in sorting and prioritizing targets in dense threat environments.

Two HARM missiles are normally carried on a typical SEAD mission, however, 4-missiles loads are currently being test-flown at Eglin AFB.

Deliveries of the Block 50D/52D began in May 1993. All but the earliest Block 50 models have been upgraded to Block 50D standard.

[sarasmom]

"Not all LTs lack such skills"

It was once considered an NCO perk and a mildly amusing form of recreation to have a 2ndLT for "breakfast".Eventually they learned not to approach one who has had two hours of sleep untill a few cups of coffee were consumed by said NCO.

I ran into a few of my former butterbars later in service, and I was very proud to see they had made it to Captain.The respect on both sides was genuine at that point.

I have to say though, more 2ndLts went earnestly in search of "cloud erradicator" than did new enlisted folks.........

[DoSomethingAboutIt]

Now wait a second, this just isn't fair. When I was a LT (a ring knocker at that) I rarely got lost and was even known as the LT who couldn't get lost.

P.S. Land Nav with a GPS is now mandatory for the EIB.

[Leisler]

Personally, I've never let truth interfere with a good story.

All enlisted will forever believe that their particular LT, and the idea of LTs, all wander about hill and dale, dragging their canoes behind them. It is just too much fun. Where Captains come from, is a perpetual mystery. Rumors have it that they are transformed Lieutenants, but some have invoked various laws of Physics against the possibility and others have mentioned obscure Vatican text. Yet others have pointed out the physically similarities between the new Captain and the old LT, however others have also noticed that the new and the old are never in the same room together at the same time, which everyone acknowledges is the authentic foundation for any conspiracy. That Lieutenants do come from West Point is readily agreed, but all concur that the Hudson is a locus for nocturnal powers and that no one ever met a enlisted that ever returned from a assignment there (something about pods). What happens to the old Lieutenants is a total black hole. Some have suggested that LTs never age and have been the same Lieutenants since the Revolution. Others postulate that LTs are a kind of Catholic Church type Limbo of decayed Warrant Officers who are too crazy to be allowed near anything of value. Who knows?

[Yehuda]

"Of course we could turn Baghdad into Grozny using B-52s in ArcLight runs, which would also make this article's concerns quite moot."

Exactly - simple solution: carpet bombing.

"All their oil, and all their camels belong to us."

Occupy and dijadify (on their oil dime).

[sarasmom]

I take it ya'll are Army, what with all the GPS references.

I guess the attitude about butterbars is universal, but perhaps different spheres of reference refines the measurement.Leisler gave it a good try.In my USAF experience, butterbars were stress reducers, LTs were judged individually, and Captains and above were assumed competant, unless proven otherwise, in which case they were relegated to stress reducers again.

Those designated "stress reducers" were treated as "fire at will" targets.OTOH, an officer who had earned his/her metal, was secure in the knowledge that he or she only had to look "funny" or cock an eyebrow at a situation to have a whole bunch of enlisted people narrowing their eyes and scanning to see what the problem was that had upset "our" officer.

Like I said, different spheres of reference.

[Tom Bombadil]

Aren't those f4's in your picture?

I will never forget the sound of an f4 on approach at Clark Air Base in 1972. No other aircraft sounded like it.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

Send a 500lb bomb to home in on that Acme GPS Jammer.

Good, if you have the right arrow in your quiver--and if the emitter doesn't exercise discipline.

Thing I don't like is if the ECM is cheap--could be there's two of them . . . </understatement>

[GreyWolf]

...most hair dryers today have at least 18 watts of power Must take a loooooonnnng time to dry your hair ;>)

[MortMan]

P.S. Land Nav with a GPS is now mandatory for the EIB.

Give me a map and compass and I'm set. It's good to know that there are more former LTs that new how to use the lensatic force, as it were. If the US military depends too heavily on externally-powered aids (like GPS), a lot of LTs will be getting their platoons lost:-) (Just as a reminder - I was a butter bar once, too:-)

[MortMan]

Honestly, most of the problems with butterbars is that they (warning: sweeping generalization forthcoming) tend to not know what they don't know. A lot of my fellow ROTCers had this problem, and they couldn't understand it.

IMHO, good captains come from good lieutenants. Good lieutenants come from good sergeants. Bad lieutenants try to teach the sergeants how much they know:)

I'm thankful my E5 brother went to great lengths to disabuse me of any air of superiority (starting before I received my commission). The greatest compliment I ever received was said by one of my sergeants to my wife - He said I should get out of the army, because I was "too good" for the cutthroat world of army careerism.

In short, I believed the maxim from Gen. George Patton - "The insignia on my shoulder is a badge of service to my soldiers." (Quote may be paraphrased slightly)

[DoSomethingAboutIt]

Does the Mort in Mortman happen to have anything to do with mortars?

[MortMan]

Nope - It's a truncation of my last name. Proud former 14E here - PATRIOT missile system. Gulf War vet come software engineer.

My platoon had a squad of 11B's that I used to hang out with. I wasn't allowed to "train" the commo, mess, supply, medic, or orderly room people, so I became a mud puppy when I wasn't in the van, guarding the buttons.

[Leisler]

I was in in the late 70's, early 80's, and to be honest, most officers were fine. And this is when the Army was just beginning to get some tractions and pull itself out from the effects of Vietnam, downsizing and Carter. I tip my hat to the good officers and NCO's that for decades turned the Army into what it is today. And they did it with little recognition. It is still an untold story.

The problem is the learning curve is so steep and Officers are buried under mindless, petty "count the flashlights" reports, ect...

I just thought it was, and still do, an enlisted mans right to make sport of his officers, so long as it is done in a light harted, Irish way and doesn't get to close to the line.

Cheers!