GPS Jamming

[watercraft]

Has anyone heard about a proposed GPS Jamming tests taking place around Davenport later this year? Had some rather interesting documentation come my way the other week at work, still trying to find it in the public domain. Just wondering if this actually going to happen.

 

[boatbuilder]

Davenport or Devonport?

 

[Rivers & creeks]

Must be davenport - trying to get a GPS signal from inside heavy oak furniture will always be problematic.

 

[bilbobaggins]

Such tests are far from new. No sooner had the US DoD deployed the Navstar/GPS constellation as a stand-off weapons guidance system than the EW industry world-wide started making jammers.

There have been several phases of 'improvement' and 'counter-improvement'. Jammers can be as small as a soft drinks can and, attached to a power supply such as a car battery, can disrupt the quite weak normal 'received signal' over several square miles. The Russians displayed an example of such a tiny device several years ago, at one of the major European arms fairs.

Probably every naval vessel of any significant size will now have area jammers that can disrupt the signal for several miles around, rendering the task of any incoming anti-ship missile considerably harder. Such equipments have to be tested regularly, and rarely will an RN warship give notice. Manufacturers also need to do 'test and development' testing of their products, and these may well be NOTAM'd, for those who read such stuff. It is possible that the test referred to above is one of these.

It is far from impossible that the RN personnel arrested by Iranian forces a few days ago had their quite simple on-board GPS devices fed with false/distorted Iranian signals, enough to cause them to be other than where their GPS displays stated they were.....

Those who want a deeper appreciation will find much on the RIN's website, under 'Satellite Navigation Special Interest Group', or by cornering an RN Electronic Warfare specialist in a Portsmouth pub, and buying the beer.

/forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[tangofour]

I have an old Garmin GPS OEM engine attached to a patch antenna with internal amplifier. The antenna amp went belly up and the antena now radiates spot on the primary GPS frequency. The unit was fitted to my glider retrieve vehicle. Picture the scene at the last National Gliding Championships where all scoring is done by recording GPS loggers. I turn on my car and every aircraft within about 200m suddenly looses GPS signal. Much consternation from the pilots on the grid. Much amusement when we traced it to my car /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif Great phsycological weapon!

 

[bilbobaggins]

[ QUOTE ]
the antenna now radiates spot on the primary GPS frequency.

[/ QUOTE ]

I would seriously counsel that that doesn't happen twice. It could thoroughly spoil your week. OfCom have, believe it or not, some very heavyweight and serious police, very well funded and equipped, looking nationwide for just such events.

Their range of concerns are closely related to the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005, and I would not take their good nature at all for granted.....

Sorreee, it's the world we now live in!

/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[Habebty]

It seems to be very easy to "jam" a GPS signal as every time I pass Orford Ness either up the Alde or off the coast My GPS jumps and says I'm somewhere in Finland!!!
(Lots of high power transmitter masts there and the site of some previously top secret radio arrays from the 70's) In fact all sorts of weird stuff seems to happen to my electronics in this area from the GPS,VHF, even log and sounder go a bit wobbly here. Also close to the local nutters (ufologists or whatever) hotspot of Rendlesham Forest!! who would no doubt claim celestial interference - and absolutely nothing to do with US airforce or RAF activity!!

 

[Duffer]

That might explain why I lost GPS position on entering Plymouth Sound on several occasions last year - this year so far so good.

 

[Twister_Ken]

Is there still all that stuff near the M1 at Rugby, where Audis used to fizzle to halt coz the elctronic ignition was suddenly inoperative. Or was that an urban myth?


Supplementary. Is Rugby urban?

 

[Bergman]

Rugby radio is still there and as far as I know still transmitting MSF frequency standards. This is due to move shortly to Anthorn in Cumbria. Not sure what this means for the future of Rugby.

Hope it doesn't close, there is a lot of history tied up in that place.

From the 1960s it was also used as a VLF transmitter for the navy.

It's full story here if anyone is interested:

http://www.alan.melia.btinternet.co.uk/rugbyrs.htm

Don't know about stopping Audis - never a bad thing to do! - but the place did once manage to set fire to itself due to excess RF heating.

Once worked with a chap who started out climbing telephone poles for BT. He saw a job advertised for an aerial rigger - think along the lines of TV aerials or the odd microwave dish he applied, got the job and was sent as his first days traing to the top of one of the 820' masts at Rugby. He didn't stay as a rigger for long.

 

[DaveS]

What an interesting article - thanks! It appears that the site is to go for housing... Rather sad, really. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[jezza]

Ah . . . Plymouth Sound eh? No surprise to us. It also happens around The Lizard, hard by the Royal Naval Air Station at Culdrose. On one occasion we were "airlifted" to the vicinity of the china clay pits several miles inland.
That was with a (usually) bulletproof Garmin 128.
Eighteen months ago, our relatively new Lowrance Globalmap 3300C had its LGC-2000 antenna fried by HMS Bulwark, which was entering the Tamar some half-mile from us, and operating 'shipprotect' - this is an electronic warfare device.
Lowrance confirmed they weren't unfamiliar with this event, and replaced the antenna FOC.
Ten days ago, while preparing for sea at our berth at the Mayflower Marina in Plymouth, the frigate HMS Westminster was proceeding up harbour within less than a cable of us and fried both the Lowrance once again, and our Furuno Navtex NX300's H-field antenna. On contacting Furuno UK, they confirmed they have experienced 'fryups' following the close passage of warships, and in particular in parts of the Med.
We have made a formal complaint to the Queen's Harbour Master, Plymouth, but don't expect a satisfactory response to our request that they fulfill their obligations and meet the replacement costs of some £400 for the antennae - they never responded to the complaint made about Bulwark.
We are used to the 'peace dividend' in Plymouth, which also includes regular GPS jamming and disruption of wifi signals adjacent to Devonport Dockyard, and in particular on the days leading up to the weekly 'Thursday War.'