Iridium and T-Mobile expand PNT deployment under U.S. DOT resilience program

Iridium and T-Mobile expand PNT deployment under U.S. DOT resilience program
by Clarence Oxford
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Oct 22, 2025

Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: IRDM) has been awarded a new contract by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) under its Complementary Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (CPNT) Action Plan Rapid Phase Award II. The agreement supports a large-scale rollout of Iridium's PNT technology to enhance the resilience of critical U.S. infrastructure, particularly 5G wireless networks.

Working in partnership with T-Mobile (NASDAQ: TMUS), Iridium will activate PNT services across a series of live network sites throughout the United States. These sites will implement Iridium's advanced timing synchronization solution, which complements existing GPS systems to deliver uninterrupted service even during GNSS disruptions. The expanded deployment will see Iridium PNT receivers installed at 90 additional T-Mobile 5G network locations across diverse U.S. regions.

The DOT's CPNT Action Plan is focused on evaluating and integrating commercially available positioning and timing technologies to ensure critical infrastructure - such as telecommunications, energy, and transportation - remains secure and reliable. By incorporating Iridium PNT, T-Mobile aims to strengthen its network performance, mitigate timing vulnerabilities, and enhance user experience with improved reliability.

"It is essential for the U.S. to strengthen the resilience of our 5G wireless networks and other critical infrastructure that relies on PNT," said Dr. Michael O'Connor, executive vice president, PNT, Iridium. "Our partnership with an industry-leading company like T-Mobile underscores the proven performance of our solution and reinforces why it's the gold standard for PNT services like timing synchronization."

T-Mobile will also conduct controlled testing at its dedicated range, featuring both normal and adverse conditions to validate Iridium's system under real-world network scenarios.

Iridium's PNT system provides sub-100-nanosecond accuracy - finer than one millionth of a second - and is secured through cryptographic methods. Its L-band signals, transmitted from Iridium's global low-Earth orbit constellation, are roughly 1,000 times stronger than standard GPS signals and can operate reliably indoors without external antennas or weather interference.