Trust in a Contested Environment: Why Navigation Resilience is Mission-Critical

Advances in aerospace and defense technology are transforming how missions are executed. But at the core of every operation — whether it involves a loitering munition, an uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) or a large fixed-wing aircraft — the same fundamental questions remain:

• Where am I?
• Where am I going?
• How will I get there?
• How fast am I moving?
• Can I trust the information guiding me?

In today’s increasingly contested environment, the last question has become the most critical of all.

The Growing Threat to GNSS

Global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) underpin nearly every modern navigation system. Yet they are also increasingly vulnerable. Jamming, spoofing and interference incidents now occur more than 1,500 times a day worldwide. This poses real risks to mission success, operational efficiency and safety across both military and civil domains.

For defense missions in particular, the implications are significant. Whether operating in denied environments, executing precision targeting or flying long-range missions, UAVs and fixed-wing platforms all depend on reliable navigation. When GNSS is compromised, those missions are put at risk.

Resilience Starts with a Layered Approach

Resilient navigation is not about replacing GNSS. It’s about ensuring continuity and confidence when GNSS is degraded or unavailable.

Honeywell Aerospace pioneered inertial navigation technology and continues to lead the industry in advancing its performance.

“Resilient navigation is knowing where you are and where you’re going with a high degree of confidence, even when traditional navigation sources are disrupted,” explained Matt Picchetti, Vice President and General Manager of Navigation & Sensors at Honeywell Aerospace. “What we’re finding is that there is no single silver bullet. Resilient navigation systems are layered and multimodal, meaning they rely on complementary navigation sources working together rather than on any single technology acting alone.”  

That reality is shaping a new approach to navigation architecture centered on inertial navigation systems (INS). Unlike satellite-based systems, inertial systems are self-contained and immune to external interference. They provide continuous positioning, navigation and timing data — even in fully denied environments.

From Redundancy to Resilience

True navigation resilience is achieved by fusing inertial data with multiple external aiding sources. 

“Resilient navigation is really about layering aiding sources to create a solution that doesn’t rely on any single sensor,” said Julie Heck, General Manager for Navigation and Sensors at Honeywell Aerospace. “We start with inertial navigation as the foundation, use GNSS when it’s available and then layer in additional aiding sources to create resilience even when one input is degraded or unavailable.”

This philosophy is embodied in the Honeywell Alternative Navigation Architecture (HANA), a flexible framework that integrates inertial systems with multiple complementary technologies to maintain performance across mission profiles.

Supporting Complex, Multi-Domain Missions

As defense operations evolve, so do the demands placed on navigation systems. Missions are becoming longer, more autonomous and more complex, spanning air, land, sea and even undersea domains.

In these environments, accuracy alone is not enough. Systems must deliver continuous integrity — the ability to provide trusted data at all times, regardless of external conditions.

“The objective is not to replace GNSS, but to augment it with complementary technologies that sustain reliable performance when GNSS is compromised,” said Trevor Stephens, Senior R&D Manager at Honeywell Aerospace.

For UAV and loitering missions, this means maintaining precise navigation even in GPS-denied zones. For large fixed-wing and high-endurance platforms, it means ensuring mission continuity over extended distances and durations.

Innovating for What’s Next in Navigation 

While the core questions of navigation haven’t changed, the systems designed to answer them are evolving rapidly.

“Technologies and system architectures will evolve significantly over the next 5 to 10 years as navigation systems become more modular, open and adaptable,” said Julie Heck.