The U.S. Army on Sunday revealed it has tested a new warfare system overseas designed to covertly scramble the navigation signals used by enemy precision weapons, making it harder for adversaries to accurately strike targets from long distances while avoiding detection.
The electronic system, dubbed “Hammer of the Gods,” was tested at sea off the U.S. West Coast for the first time in mid-July as part of the Project Convergence Capstone 6 (PC-C6) experiment.
The U.S. Army executed Project Convergence-Capstone 6 from July 20 to July 29 at Fort Irwin, California, directed by Lt. Gen. Michael McCurry, commanding general of the Army Futures and Concepts Command.
While land-based versions have been demonstrated over the past two years, the exercise marked the official debut of the maritime variant, the Army said.
The portable signal disruptor can reportedly blind enemy to several precision-guided weapons such as long-range artillery, guided missiles and cruise missiles.
The radio signals specifically jam positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) signals, including GPS data, that precision weapons rely on to navigate accurately.
Without reliable PNT data, weapon accuracy drops sharply, increasing the likelihood of delayed missions and missed targets.
The system represents a shift in defensive strategy.
The system also creates a resilient communications network that allows friendly forces to stay connected despite heavy electronic jamming.
It links military devices together, so troops can continue to “shoot, move and communicate” even while operating in degraded environments.
Multiple branches collaborated on the test.
The testing brought together the U.S. Army, Navy and Space Force, alongside U.S. Space Forces Pacific, Naval Base San Diego and the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, to integrate space, cyber and conventional capabilities during the exercise.
Army officials said the experiment demonstrated the counter-PNT system could be successfully launched, operated and recovered in real-world maritime environments.
Lt. Col. Darrin Hall, chief of modeling, simulation and integration for U.S. Space Forces Pacific, explained the system’s significance.
“PNT is the foundation of modern military operations,” Hall said. “Counter-PNT effects enhance lethality by impacting the backbone for pinpoint targeting via long-range artillery, guided missiles and cruise munitions.
He elaborated on the weapon accuracy challenge.
Without PNT data, modern weapon precision drops sharply, resulting in delayed missions, missed objectives, or severe collateral damage.
Hall emphasized the operational value to forces on the ground.
“Understanding how to protect and operate through PNT disruption ensures our forces can continue to shoot, move and communicate effectively,” Hall said.
He added perspective on how recent conflicts illustrate the vulnerability.
When GPS signals or other PNT services are disrupted, the effects can ripple across communications, navigation, and overall mission effectiveness.
Hall highlighted the joint effort’s success in the maritime setting.
“This experiment proved that counter-PNT capabilities can be deployed, controlled and recovered in real-world maritime operations while extending operational reach through resilient mesh networking.
A significant focus of the maritime test involved evaluating counter-PNT, meaning the ability to disrupt an adversary’s Positioning, Navigation, and Timing systems, the same technology behind GPS that underpins everything from basic troop navigation to the guidance systems on precision-guided missiles and artillery shells.
Hammer of the Gods is an electronic warfare system built for rapid deployment, combining an expanded range of command-and-control and operational functions while keeping its electromagnetic footprint low.
In the viral moment during Project Convergence Capstone 6, the U.S. Army, Navy and Space Force jointly tested the maritime variant of an electronic warfare system designed to disrupt enemy navigation systems.
The U.S. Army completed the first overseas test of its “Hammer of the Gods” electronic warfare system, designed to jam GPS navigation used by enemy precision-guided weapons.
The maritime variant made its operational debut during PC-C6 off the coast of southern California.
The test at sea marked the system’s first overseas operation after land-based demonstrations.
Lt. Gen. McCurry stated “PC-C6 is the largest experiment in the history of the program, delivering a critical opportunity to continue validation of the NGC2 architecture at operational scale.”
The data and insights gathered during this intensive 10-day event will serve as a foundational element for the Army’s modernization trajectory.