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Autor fotografie: IAI, Public domain|Popisek: ADA
Since the war between Israel and the two Iranian proxies – the Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Hamas in Gaza, GPS systems went crazy. According to sources,the GPS was denied in the war zones by the Hezbollah and by Israel at the same time. This according to experts is a very clear "wake up" call to users of GPS based weapon systems.
Transfer of advanced western weapon systems to Iran can cause a problem
In recent years, GPS denial events caused by the Russian forces in Syria, accelerated the development of systems that are intended to make Israeli military systems immune to such disruptions. Some are already in operation while others are being tested. Maj. General (ret.) GioraEiland told Security &defence that the transfer of advanced western weapon systems to Iran can cause a problem: "When a country like Iran puts its hands on an advanced U.S made weapon system like the JDAM bomb it creates a danger of finding the weak spots of such a system. In the JDAM example the GPS navigation system can be affected with advanced GPS denial technologies like the ones developed by Russia."
Eiland served in the Israeli defence forces (IDF) and is a former head of the Israeli National Security Council. Maj. General (Ret.) Issac Ben Israel told Security &defence that the real meaning of such transfer of weapon systems to Iran lies in the details: "In the GPS denial and immune systems, the question is which side is one step ahead of the other. If the Russians managed to be one step ahead then the transfer of this technology is meaningful."Ben Israel was the head of the Israeli air force (IAF) Operations Research Branch, Analysis and Assessment Division of IAF Intelligence, and was the Head of Military R&D in Israel Defense Forces and Ministry of Defense. Israeli made weapon systems that use GPS as a guidance sensor also use other methods that are immune to interferences. By analyzing the Russian GPS denial systems operated in Syria, Israel took some action to be better ready to a more aggressive GPS denial.
Iran has "an impressive" capability in reverse engineering
Israeli defence sources said that Iran has "an impressive" capability in reverse engineering. This as a result of the international sanctions that blocked the sale of advanced weapon systems to this country. The sources pointed to the Iranian Shahed-191 drone that is believed to be based on the design of the American made RQ-170 Sentinel drone. This advanced unmanned system was brought down by Iran in 2011.
The proliferation of Russian-made GPS jamming systems in the Middle East accelerated the process of equipping the Israeli airforce's aircraft with anti-jamming systems. In 2021, the IAF revealed that advanced anti-jamming systems developed by Israel aerospace industries (IAI) has been integrated into advanced platforms used by its different squadrons. The system is the ADA Anti-Jam GPS System, designed to protect GPS/GNSS navigation from jamming.
The ADA System has demonstrated operational maturity
According to IAI the system has been integrated into advanced platforms used by the IAF, including into F-16 fighter jets and various types of UAS. The ADA System has demonstrated operational maturity and is in use by a number of international customers on various airborne, land, and marine platforms. IAI says that the ADA is combat-proven in providing immunity against GPS jammers, after it demonstrated its effectiveness in Operation " Guardian of the walls" in Gaza in 2021.
Israel first suffered from GNSS denial when the Russian forces in Syria operated some powerful jamming systems. The war in Ukraine also created a wide area where the GNSS signals cannot be trusted. The capability of armed forces to deny the GNSS service brought some countries to invest in technologies aimed at enabling their military forces to continue their reliance on GNSS based navigation. The GPS navigation system is operated by the U.S and uses a dedicated constellation of medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellites.
GPS Anti-Jamming systems protect against deliberate jamming and interference for GPS receivers. When the GPS signal gets to the surface of the Earth, it is feeble and can be overpowered by stronger radio frequency (RF) energy. An unprotected Code receiver can be interfered with by a tiny jammer with a power of around 10 Watts for up to 30 kilometers (line of sight).
IAI has unveiled Compact ADA
The Israeli effort to develop anti GPS jamming systems continues. Recently, IAI has unveiled Compact ADA, offering reduced Size, Weight and Power (SWaP), an advanced system that protects avionic systems from GNSS jamming. The Compact ADA system maintains assured PNT (Position, Navigation and Timing) by overcoming GNSS jamming, and ensuring that tactical platforms can continue to operate with consistent GNSS availability as compared to most navigation, communication, and warfare systems which depend on the continuous availability of GPS/GNSS signals. However, the cheap, low-end equipment, can seriously degrade GNSS Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT) even to the point of total solution denial.
IAI has over 20 years of proven experience in supplying a wide range of GNSS Anti-Jam solutions for the most demanding requirements, and vast experience in integrating immune navigation solutions into airborne (manned and UAV), surface, maritime and guided munitions. Compact ADA is a derivative of the ADA system adapted to air tactical platforms. The Compact ADA offers the benefits from the advanced immunity capabilities of ADA in tactical platforms. The ADA product portfolio, developed by IAI, is compatible with a broad range of satellite navigation systems (GNSS). Its state-of-the-art technology implements multiple mitigation methods and specialized digital signal processing algorithms. The system's versatility facilitates the integration into numerous platforms.
The Israeli defence industries are aware of the problems GPS denial systems create and therefore in parallel to developing counter systems, add new sensors to the very advanced systems, mainly long range missiles. These are designed to operate in case the weapon system is affected by GPS denial. In such a case the other highly classified sensors or a "mix" of them are designed to take the weapon systems to its target with very high accuracy.
By Arie Egozi