Issue Brief #13
February 1, 2002

Critical Critical Navigational Warfare Program is Being Jammed by DoD

Success in any military operation relies on the winning of the cat-and-mouse game of advancing technology.  At no time, can a military rest on it laurels and stop looking ahead to the next approaching threat.  This goes for the United States armed forces.  While we are number one in the world, our adversaries (real and potential) are actively seeking to gain technology that can deny us access to the battle field, more specifically, air superiority.

With this said, to meet its global commitments, the U.S. military is increasingly reliant on access to the Global Positioning System (GPS).  GPS provides our forces with accurate navigation and precise timing for high-speed digital communications necessary to conduct precision strikes and battle management.

However, there is a high probability that adversary forces will attempt to deny the U.S. and its allies access to the GPS service during military operations.  In fact, evidence suggests that potential enemy forces are acquiring the electronic jammers necessary to cause the denial of GPS access and in some cases have already deployed such devices to their forces.  This should come as no surprise given our publicly stated reliance on GPS, the relative easiness in developing a GPS jammer, and the low cost of purchasing them.  Perhaps the most insidious threat posed by GPS jamming is that since an aircraft receiver is more robust than its weapons receivers, the pilot may not be aware of mission failure.  If the enemy succeeds in this venture, they will severely degrade the ability of the U.S. and allied forces to carry out military operations.

Future enhancements to the GPS constellation and user equipment will provide a significantly more robust capability against this emerging jamming threat.  However, it will be at least a decade before these improved systems are fielded and operational.  Our military cannot wait this long because the jammers are already out in the market.  Given our total dependence on GPS for carrying out present military operations, it is essential that a robust program to mitigate the threat that exists today should be given a high priority.

The Department of Defense (DoD) initiated such an effort in 1995 to answer this problem. The Navigational Warfare (NAVWAR) Program focused on developing and fielding a capability in the near-term to counter both the jamming threat and the hostile exploitation of GPS.  Specifically, NAVWAR has three distinct goals: (1) protecting U.S. and allied forces from GPS disruption; (2) preventing GPS access and use by hostile forces; and (3) accomplishing the first two goals without unduly disrupting civil services outside the area of conflict.  A robust NAVWAR program would not only reduce the likelihood of GPS jamming, but also provide the situational awareness necessary to locate the GPS jammer and counter it.  Unfortunately, program resources have been continuously diverted to meet other long-term military priorities leaving our forces without the resources to operate effectively in a hostile jamming environment. 

Dedication to the NAVWAR program would provide advanced technologies and operations that are critical to ensuring success in the electronic warfare (EW) mission.  The goal of EW to provide access to the battle space, enable our military forces to move forward, and protect our pilots and other military personnel from the enemy.  EW is essential from day one of a conflict through to the end.  With our military’s increasing reliance on GPS for all facets of military operations, there is no excuse for overlooking essential EW programs, such as NAVWAR.  As Congress considers future defense spending, it must hold DoD accountable for ensuring our military forces have a robust EW capability to counter the ever-advancing technology falling into the hands of our adversaries.  We cannot be caught being the mouse when it comes to GPS technology.

Joseph R. Pitts
Member of Congress  

Electronic Warfare Working Group

Congressman Joe Pitts, Founder and Co-Chairman

420 Cannon House Office Building

Washington, DC 20515

202 225-2411 phone    202 225-2013 fax