Under the USD 49 million contract from the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Northrop Grumman will provide the preliminary hardware and software architecture design for the Embedded Global Positioning System (GPS)/Inertial Navigation System (INS)-Modernization, or EGI-M, technology. The modernized system is expected to be available for platform integration starting in 2019.

Northrop Grumman’s EGI-M will be based upon modular, open systems architecture to support the rapid insertion of new capabilities and adaptability based on unique platform requirements. Additionally, EGI-M will incorporate M-Code-capable GPS receivers, which will help to ensure the secure transmission of accurate military signals.

“We are dedicated to ensuring mission success and the safety of warfighters by providing an EGI-M solution that offers robust, accurate and reliable positioning, navigation and timing [PNT] information, even in GPS-denied conditions,” said Dean Ebert, vice president, navigation and positioning systems business unit, Northrop Grumman Mission Systems.

EGI-M technology is designed for compatibility with current systems on legacy aircraft, allowing ease of integration and rapid adoption of new capabilities. EGI-M will also comply with the Federal Aviation Administration’s NextGen air traffic control requirements that aircraft flying at higher altitudes be equipped with Automatic Dependence Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS‑B) Out by January 2020. ADS-B Out transmits information about an aircraft’s altitude, speed and location to ground stations and to other equipped aircraft in the vicinity.