Locata Corporation recently announced U.S. Air Force (USAF) veteran Paul Benshoof, formerly chief of strategic development at the 746th test squadron (746TS) at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, has joined the company as global business development manager for military and government applications in the U.S. and abroad.
Benshoof, who witnessed the success of Locata’s precision positioning in GPS-denied environments during USAF LocataNet development at White Sands Missile Range, will set and execute the company’s worldwide defence sales initiatives.
Near-universal reliance on GPS for a broad range of critical positioning and navigation requirements in military, civilian government and commercial applications – despite the fact that GPS signals are frequently blocked, jammed, spoofed or unavailable – is driving increasing demand for an alternative positioning solution.
“It’s an honor to have Mr. Benshoof join our team,” said Nunzio Gambale, CEO and co-founder of Locata.
“Paul’s caliber of GPS expertise and firsthand experience with military and government positioning requirements will be instrumental in helping grow our business in this sector. He will help military and government organisations meet next-generation positioning needs, using Locata’s world-first backup to GPS. I’ve known and worked with him and his USAF team since 2005, so he’s seen Locata’s
groundbreaking technology in action. The fact he has now chosen to join our company is a tribute to the importance of our emerging technology. It also tells you all you need to know about how well our ‘impossible technology’ actually works!”
Benshoof began his 22 years in GPS as the Project Manager responsible for the development and procurement of the PLGR – the DoD’s first secure handheld GPS receiver, manufactured by Rockwell Collins. He then devoted his technical prowess to developing navigation warfare (NAVWAR) test assets to support advanced technology demonstrations in GPS-denied environments, as well as supervising
international test programs for NATO and allied forces. As GPS testing became increasingly important, he formed and directed the GPS Test Center of Expertise, a consortium of U.S. test agencies dedicated to GPS test and evaluation, while also chairing an international working group that helped standardise GPS test practices among 11 participating countries.
Ultimately, he was selected to implement and lead the 746th Test Squadron’s Strategic Development activity that worked with commercial and military GPS
industry to project guidance, navigation and NAVWAR testing shortfalls, and then managed developmental programs to fill technical capability gaps.
“I’m excited to join a company that has done what no one thought was possible,” said Benshoof. “While other companies have attempted to replicate GPS without satellites, Locata is the first to succeed. Just as the early days of GPS were sparked by groundbreaking military applications, Locata has followed this same evolutionary path, yet much more rapidly. I’m honoured to be a part of the team bringing essential
GPS backup to the countless nations, organisations and partners that need it.”
