As dependence on positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) continue to expand across defense, aviation and commercial markets, expectations for GNSS reliability are rising just as quickly.
Read our top four takeaways from our conversation with Lisa Dyer, executive director, GPS Innovation Alliance, or listen to the full episode.
Takeaway 1: GNSS resilience is no longer about a single system.
Dyer emphasized that GPS, while foundational, is now part of a broader GNSS ecosystem that includes multiple government constellations and emerging commercial systems.
“GNSS stands for global navigation satellite systems. And historically, those have been limited to those that have been designed, built, launched, and operated by governments,” Dyer said.
GNSS has expanded to include commercial satellite-PNT systems. Providers such as Iridium already offer global service, while emerging systems like TrustPoint will deliver coverage using the C-band to support commercial and military users, she said.
Takeaway 2: Signal diversity improves resilience, but integration remains a bottleneck.
New signals, frequency bands and orbital regimes offer meaningful resilience benefits, particularly as interference affects users well beyond conflict zones, Dyer said, elaborating on TrustPoint’s C-band signal.
“Since all of the other systems are in L-band, [TrustPoint] provides that diversity of signal that is really unique and very helpful as many people are starting to figure out how do you exploit or stop these signals from being transmitted, particularly in conflict areas,” she said.
However, she noted a major hurdle: Integrating new signals into everyday devices or military systems is far more complex than building the satellites themselves, making signal integration one of the commercial market’s biggest challenges.
Takeaway 3: Multi-constellation GNSS is already the default.
For most commercial users, multi-GNSS operation is already standard and largely invisible.
While highly regulated industries such as aviation still primarily rely on GPS, “for many of the commercial uses, 96% of the commercial devices and receivers out there are using multi GNSS systems,” Dyer said.
Accessing multiple constellations improves availability and accuracy, particularly in urban or obstructed environments, she said.
“For instance, if you’re in Tokyo and you can access Japan’s QZSS, which is focused on the Asia region, you’re going to have a better ability to get access to those signals in some of the urban areas that you may not be able to get from GPS and other medium earth orbit systems that are in slightly different inclined orbits,” she said.
The goal, Dyer noted, is simplicity at the user level. “Hopefully the user doesn’t see that they’re [accessing multiple constellations] ... that they just turn on their device or their receiver...they don’t have to make any configuration changes to the device.”
Takeaway 4: Trust in GNSS is shaped as much by policy as by technology.
Dyer highlighted autonomous systems – especially drones – as a flashpoint for competing policy priorities. “Sometimes I can see where the government is operating in one way and planning to operate in one way and where they’re undercutting their own ambitions in a different area,” she said.
Beyond-visual-line-of-sight drone operations are a recognized priority, with rules in development to enable wider use. But Dyer noted a key tension: These drones rely on GPS to navigate safely, while some counter-drone efforts aim to disrupt GNSS signals. She warned that this conflict between enabling autonomy and protecting against misuse will likely shape future policy debates.
GNSS resilience now hinges on layered constellations, diverse signals, seamless integration, and policies that safeguard trust – keeping users in both commercial and defense sectors reliably connected.
For more, listen to the full episode.
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