navigation technology • Page 3 of 5

Oct- 2025 -

29 October

Drones - Latest News, Features & Expert Opinion

Red Cat’s ‘Black Widow’ Drone Masters GPS-Denied Skies With Palantir Software

Red Cat’s “Black Widow” drone flew through a signal-denied environment, marking the first instance a US Army-certified drone using visual navigation.

22 October

Technology

Akhsan Erido Elezhar

GPS Out? Safran’s Blacknaute Steps In to Navigate the Signal-Denied Battlefield

Blacknaute delivers high-precision navigation and timing in GPS-denied environments, combining resilient INS tech, multi-constellation GNSS, and an ultra-stable atomic clock.

1 October

Americas

Akhsan Erido Elezhar

MAPS GEN II Brings Anti-Jamming Navigation to US Army Vehicles

MAPS GEN II is the US Army’s next-gen navigation system, bringing M-Code encryption, sensor fusion, and upgraded anti-jam and anti-spoof antennas.

Aug- 2025 -

15 August

Space

An artistic rendering depicts the Air Force Research Laboratory, or AFRL’s, Navigation Technology Satellite-3, or NTS-3, in simulated geosynchronous orbit. NTS-3, an experimental platform designed to demonstrate technologies to increase resiliency, robustness and reprogrammability of Position, Navigation, and Timing functionality in space, will be on display at AFRL’s “Engine to Accelerate” booths at the 2024 Air and Space Forces Association’s Air, Space and Cyber Conference Sept. 16-18, 2024, in National Harbor, Maryland. AFRL is accelerating innovation by transforming the satellite navigation architecture to be reprogrammable both on-orbit and in the field, which enables new capabilities to support the warfighter faster through software updates. Like downloading a new app on your smartphone, this means that new satellites will not need to be launched to upgrade the signals, and that warfighters will not need to purchase and deploy new hardware to take advantage of upgraded signals. NTS-3 will mature technologies like the advanced timekeeping system that can detect and mitigate atomic clock faults without direct operator intervention. NTS-3's software-defined receiver, known as Global Navigation Satellite System Test Architecture, can receive and process new navigation signals that improve performance for U.S. forces in the presence of GPS interference or spoofing (a process by which users are sent inaccurate signals telling them that they are in the incorrect time and place). NTS-3 is anticipated to launch in late 2024. (Courtesy photo illustration)

Rojoef Manuel

AFRL Launches Experimental Satellite Into Orbit to Secure Navigational Edge

The US Air Force Research Laboratory has taken a major step toward securing the nation’s navigation advantage with the launch of the Navigation Technology Satellite-3 (NTS-3) aboard a United Launch Alliance Vulcan rocket in Florida.

Jul- 2025 -

28 July

Technology

Akhsan Erido Elezhar

California Firm Claims Its Cloud Tech Can Make GPS 100x More Accurate

Swift Navigation unveiled Skylark, a cloud-powered positioning tech designed to correct GPS errors and deliver centimeter-level accuracy.

24 July

Americas

Akhsan Erido Elezhar

Bat-Inspired Sensor Could Help Drones Navigate Without Cameras

A new echolocation system developed by researchers at the University of Michigan could help drones and robots “see” in darkness without cameras, laser-based sensors, or GPS.

Jun- 2025 -

20 June

Drones - Latest News, Features & Expert Opinion

A British soldier operating a parrot drone during exercise HEDGEHOG.

Rojoef Manuel

British Firm Builds ‘Ultra-Compact’ Navigation System for Tactical Drones

UK-based HBK has developed an “ultra-compact” inertial navigation system designed to support high-precision localization in tactical drones.

3 June

Europe

Christine Casimiro

Sodern’s New Tech Uses Stars to Guide Aircraft When GPS Fails

French company Sodern has developed a system that looks to the stars instead of satellites to keep aircraft and drones on course amid electronic warfare.

May- 2025 -

22 May

Air