A: System Categories

GAO Report on GPS Disruptions Faults DHS, DoT Efforts

A General Accountability Office (GAO) report on “GPS Disruptions” issued today (November 6, 2013) concludes that the Department of Transportation (DoT) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) need to improve their efforts to assess the associated risks and mitigate them.

The report comes nearly nine years after a National Security Policy Directive (NSPD-39) on U.S. Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) Policy directed the agencies to develop a plan for detecting and mitigating GPS interference and develop a backup PNT capability.

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Assured PNT: Army Links Smart Phones and GPS Devices

U.S. Army DAGR GPS receiver

The Army is working on GPS equipment that would connect with a single, user-friendly device like a smart phone or through a single hub to reduce the number of devices a soldier has to carry and to facilitate software updates.

The work is part of a wide-ranging effort at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland to shift the focus away from having positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) capability in each device —such as a DAGR (Defense Advanced GPS Receiver) or range finder — connecting equipment into a single device that supplies the necessary PNT information.

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Space-Based PNT NCO Director Retiring; New RITA Director Confirmed

After just a year in office, the leader of the organization that helps keep federal GPS activities in sync is retiring.

National Coordination Office (NCO) Director Jan Brecht-Clark, told Inside GNSS that her family convinced her it was a good time to make the move.

“My family has been talking to me about retiring while I still have my health,” she said, adding that she is looking forward to traveling.

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2012 Delta IV Launch Investigation Results Delay Fifth GPS Block IIF

Planned launch of the fifth GPS Block II-F satellite on a Delta IV rocket has been delayed twice and now has no firm date for a new attempt.

Officials with the United Launch Alliance (ULA) — a 50-50 joint venture owned by Lockheed Martin and Boeing — attributed the delay to recent results of the second phase of an investigation into an anomaly that affected the second stage of a Delta IV GPS launch in October 2012.

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Air Force May Delay Phasing Out L2 Semi-Codeless Signal

The Air Force may hold off on phasing out codeless and semi-codeless access to the GPS L2 signal in light of delays to GPS modernization, experts told attendees at the recent Civil GPS Service Interface Committee (CGSIC) meeting. The issue will likely be discussed as part of the formulation of the 2014 Federal Radionavigation Plan (FRP).

“Semi-codeless retirement in 2020 is being evaluated,” said Col. Colonel Harold Martin, deputy director of the National Coordination Office for Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT).

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