PRESS RELEASE : Military ‘silent hangar’ to help protect against foreign GPS jamming [August 2024]

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 21 August 2024.

A new test facility, one of the largest in Europe, will help military kit to be better protected from attempts to jam GPS devices.

The facility will provide a key capability to develop UK assets that can perform in the harshest electromagnetic environments on operations.

Under the new £20 million contract, QinetiQ will build 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 fit some of the biggest military assets, including Protector drones, Chinook helicopters, and F-35 fighter jets – a far greater capacity than existing UK facilities.

Due to open in 2026, the anechoic hangar creates the perfect environment to test the integrity of the UK’s military equipment. The hangar also prevents testing affecting other users, such as the emergency services and air traffic control.

The facility will support new roles over the next two years for the local area around Boscombe Down, further enhancing the UK’s pool of electromagnetic expertise, and skilled technical jobs.

It will also offer a range of opportunities beyond defence, to wider government, industry and to critical national infrastructure.

Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry, Maria Eagle, said:

Hostile threats jamming GPS to disorientate military equipment has become increasingly common.

This cutting-edge test facility will help us eliminate vulnerabilities from our platforms, protect our national security and keep our Armed Forces better protected on global deployments.

It will be one of the largest facilities in Europe and roughly the size of an aircraft hangar, simulating hostile environments and putting the UK’s most advanced military equipment through its paces.

The specialist hangar will reduce reflections, echoes or the escape of radio-frequency waves. The GPS simulators and threat emulators inside the chamber will provide the ability for the UK to create a number of hostile environments to test how well equipment can withstand jamming, and other threats, that attempt to confuse or disrupt military assets.

Will Blamey, Chief Executive, UK Defence, QinetiQ, said:

On an increasingly digital battlefield, the debilitating effects of electronic warfare are a persistent threat.

The testing we will conduct using this new facility will be integral to strengthening the resilience of military equipment, which in turn enhances the safety and security of our Armed Forces and the United Kingdom.

Richard Bloomfield, Head of Electronic Warfare (CBRN) Space at Defence Equipment & Support, said:

The subject of GPS jamming has been well documented in the press, making this new facility all the more vital to help us keep our armed forces safe while protecting the nation and our allies.

Not only will this be one of the largest such chambers in Europe, but it will also be one of the most up to date and high-tech in the world, where hostile environments can be safely recreated to put military equipment, such as fighter jets and drones, through testing to understand their performance in challenging environments representing the many external threats that may be faced.