The £67m contract to develop secure satellite navigation receivers

The programme will deliver critical capability to provide UK Defence with accurate and resilient positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) which will underpin the UK’s ability to undertake 24/7 military operations around the world in the most demanding and increasingly contested operational environments.

The use of multi-constellation, multi-service satellite navigation signals, multiple sensors and QinetiQ’s advanced processing technologies will enable secured navigation ensuring that users and platforms (increasingly including autonomous land, maritime, air and weapons systems) will be able to navigate accurately, robustly and safely.

Defence Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan, said: “Whether it’s soldiers conducting operations in remote environments or fighter jet pilots flying in contested airspace, our armed forces depend on satellite navigation technology. These state-of-the-art receivers will help to ensure our armed forces can defend UK interests wherever and whenever they are threatened.”

Steve Wadey, CEO, QinetiQ, added: “Ensuring that UK Forces have the best and most resilient secured navigation capabilities is essential to ensuring that they are able to operate effectively in increasingly challenging operational environments. We are extremely pleased to be working with MOD, DE&S and DSTL to deliver this critical capability. This programme will exploit QinetiQ’s advanced technologies and, working collaboratively with our partners across the supply base, deliver substantial operational advantage for UK Defence.”

QinetiQ, working with its partner (Collins Aerospace) and sub-contractors (Roke Manor Research, Raytheon Systems Limited, Nottingham Scientific Limited, Phixos and a number of other specialist suppliers and manufacturing partners) will work together to provide advanced navigation products that are UK sovereign supplied, ITAR-free, Low Size Weight And Power (SWAP) delivering high accuracy, resilient and secured operational capability.

The delivery date for the first R-GNS products is February 2022.