UK to build Europe’s largest center to protect military hardware from GPS jammers
A new testing facility, one of Europe’s most significant, will ensure that the military kit is better guarded against the jamming of GPS instruments.
The capability will provide the key to developing UK assets that can perform in the most hostile electromagnetic environments during operation. The new £20 million contract with QinetiQ will create a radio frequency, anti-jamming test facility at the Ministry of Defence’s Boscombe Down site in Wiltshire.
The ‘silent hangar’ will be large enough to accommodate some of the biggest military assets, such as Protector drones, Chinook helicopters, and even F-35 fighter jets. It is unlike any other capacity that the current UK facilities have.
The anechoic hangar will open in 2026, allowing for perfect testing of the integrity of this country’s military equipment. It will also ensure that testing does not impact other users, such as the emergency services and air traffic control. Over the next two years, the facility will bring new roles to the local area around Boscombe Down, building further on the pool of UK electromagnetic expertise and technical skill jobs.
It will also provide opportunities beyond defense, into wider government, industry, and critical national infrastructure. Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry Maria Eagle said: Hostile threats jamming GPS to disorient military equipment have become increasingly common. This cutting-edge test facility will help us eliminate vulnerabilities in our platforms, protect our national security, and keep our Armed Forces better protected on global deployments.
Arranged to take place in one of the most extensive facilities in Europe, it is the size of approximately an aircraft hangar, simulating hostile environments and putting the UK’s most advanced military equipment through its paces.
By the very nature of this specialist hangar design, reflections, echoes, and radio-frequency radiation from inside the chamber will be reduced. The capability within the chamber to simulate GPS signals and threat emitters will ensure that the UK can create a broad range of hostile environments that test how well equipment can stand up against an attempt to jam, disrupt, or confuse military assets. Will Blamey, Chief Executive of UK Defence, QinetiQ, said that electronic warfare remains a disabling possibility on a battlefield increasingly fought in the digital domain.
The testing we will be able to conduct with the support of this new facility will have a key role in improving the resilience of military equipment, hence ensuring a higher level of safety and security for our Armed Forces and the United Kingdom: Richard Bloomfield, Head of Electronic Warfare (CBRN) Space at Defence Equipment & Support. The media well cover GPS jamming, hence the importance of this brand-new facility in helping us keep our defense personnel safe while defending the nation and our allies.
