Lockheed Martin Upgrades Security On US Air Force GPS Control Segment

The security upgrades developed by Lockheed Martin for the current ground control system of the US Air Force's Global Positioning System (GPS) have been fully operationalized to safeguard data and to ensure satellite availability.

The GPS Intrusion Protection Reinforcement (GIPR) technology refresh is part of the Air Force's strategy to modernize the current GPS system and to ensure the availability of its services for more than one billion global military, civilian and commercial users daily, the company announced Monday.

The GIPR advances the Operational Control Segment's ability to protect data and infrastructure, enhance the sustainability of the system, and meet future GPS operational requirements. Infusing advanced hardware and software solutions for information assurance provides improved protection against today's rapidly changing cyber threats.

"The GPS Control Segment Sustainment (GCS) contract is important to the sustainment of positioning, navigation and timing services for our military, government officials and citizens," said Vinny Sica, vice president of Lockheed Martin's Space Ground Solutions.

"A system this large requires continued security focus and that's where Lockheed Martin's information security capabilities are on the cutting edge." Sica added.

Beyond data protection, GIPR resolves many equipment obsolescence issues and increases system maintainability with modern vendor supported hardware and operating systems. This is the second major technology refresh on the GPS command and control system since the GCS Sustainment contract was awarded. 

The Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin the GIPR engineering modification in 2013, and the system is now fully deployed into the GPS Master Control Station and the Alternate Master Control Station.

The project included system design, hardware procurement, software development, network configuration design, and technical documentation.

The Global Positioning Systems Directorate at the US Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center contracted the GIPR upgrade. Air Force Space Command's 2nd Space Operations Squadron (2SOPS), based at Schriever Air Force Base, Colo., manages and operates the GPS constellation for both civil and military users.