Boeing Integrated Defense Systems has awarded GPS Source, Inc., of Pueblo West, Colorado, a multimillion dollar contract for the development of GPS retransmission equipment for the C-17 Globemaster III.
Boeing Integrated Defense Systems has awarded GPS Source, Inc., of Pueblo West, Colorado, a multimillion dollar contract for the development of GPS retransmission equipment for the C-17 Globemaster III.
A key element of the USAF/USA Joint Precision Airdrop System (JPADS), the custom retransmission system will provide GPS signal availability throughout the C-17 cargo hold, providing real-time GPS data for payload guidance receivers. According to GPS Source, the system enables an aircraft’s load master to verify payload receiver operation prior to release and further enable the receivers to provide steering commands immediately upon the pallet’s exit from the aircraft.
The JPADS equipment combines the U.S. Army’s Precision and Extended Glide Airdrop System (PEGASYS) with the U.S. Air Force’s Precision Airdrop System (PADS) to enable conventional military aircraft to accurately drop a large range of supplies onto the battlefield while minimizing risk to the aircraft and the possibility of enemy detection of aircraft drop zones.
