The US Air Force wants to embed atomic clocks in drones to fly without GPS

GPS doesn't work — what should drones do in combat?

Imagine: reconnaissance drones are sent to an area where GPS is completely suppressed. No navigation, no communication, no synchronization. One by one, they get lost, lose their way, and collide with each other. Such scenarios are not fiction, but the reality of modern conflicts. That is why the US Air Force is looking for an alternative. Their new idea is to use atomic clocks directly on board the drones so that the swarm can operate smoothly, even if the satellites are unavailable.

It's not about time accuracy. It's about survival in battle.

Atomic clocks on board: not fiction, but new navigation

In a new request for information (RFI FA2377-26-R-B002), the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) announced its search for solutions for positioning, navigation and synchronization (PNT) systems without relying on GPS. The key element is the New generation Atomic clock technology (NGAC). Previously, such watches were too bulky, but now they have become compact and energy efficient.

If you install them on drones, they will be able to accurately measure time — so accurately that they can calculate their position based on signals from neighboring drones or ground stations, rather than from satellites.

JMPR and NGAC — how to synchronize a swarm without satellites

AFRL/RYWN (Department of Navigation and Communications) is evaluating the creation of a test stand called the Joint Multi-INT Precision Reference (JMPR). He must check how well atomic clocks can synchronize in difficult conditions — with interference, suppression, in urban areas.

The bottom line is that if all the drones in a swarm are synchronized to within nanoseconds, they can use techniques like triangulation, inertial navigation, and data exchange to "sense" each other and maintain formation—like a flock of birds that doesn't need a map.

Why does the swarm need nanosecond precision?

GPS is enough for the average user. But for a swarm of drones that must attack simultaneously, maneuver in narrow spaces and not interfere with each other, any delay in the signal is critical. Atomic clocks avoid the accumulation of errors that quickly render the swarm useless.

Such technologies are the basis for future autonomous operations, where drones do not just fly, but think and act as a single organism.

Sources

1. HigherGov — overview of Joint Multi-INT Precision Reference (JMPR) program
2. Defence Blog — U.S. Air Force eyes atomic-clock tech for drone swarms under JMPR
3. GovTribe — JMPR-related contracts and vehicle details
4. SAM.gov — Joint Multi-INT Precision Reference contract notices

The US Air Force's "Space Shuttle" will test quantum navigation without GPS

X-37B

The American Space Forces are preparing for the most unusual mission of their mysterious X-37B unmanned spaceplane. This device, which looks like a miniature shuttle, has already demonstrated its capabilities in space seven times, testing secret equipment and maneuvering in orbit so that even satellite specialists could not always keep track of it. Now the eighth, regular mission is launching, and this time it has an ambitious goal: to learn how to navigate in space without the help of GPS.

The launch of the X-37B is scheduled for August 21 from Cape Canaveral on a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle. The main highlight of the mission is testing advanced quantum sensors and lasers right in space. Why is this important? Because GPS, which we are all so dependent on, can easily be blocked or disabled in the event of a conflict. But quantum sensors based on the fundamental laws of physics can become a completely independent navigation system. They are capable of measuring acceleration and rotation with incredible accuracy, which makes it possible to determine the position and trajectory of the device without looking at any satellites.

If the tests are successful, this will pave the way for the creation of completely new navigation systems that are invulnerable to interference, not only for spacecraft, but also for aircraft, submarines and ground-based equipment. The X-37B, which has already served for more than 10 years and spent almost 10 years in space in total, will once again become a "flying laboratory" for the most daring technological experiments.