Military pilots/aviators can you answer this question?

This has been on my mind all week.

Do fighter jets and helicopters have a special device like a GPS??
Like if a Naval aviator and an Airforce pilot are in the air, how does the NAVAL aviator know that a 'friendly' is approaching him? is there some kind of technology that makes him conform this on his radar or does he just have to trust that the Airforce pilot is not lying on the radio??? (thats alot of trust if you ask me)
Does the Coast Guard, NAVY, Army and Airfocre pilots have special flight codes that they use in conversations? and if so how does everyone memorize them?

Also, the NAVY, Marines and Airforce are the only branches with fighter jets; Do they help out and participate with one another or is there a sought of mild rivalry since all branches are well trained and not dependent on one another??

redleg

Yes. There are several ways. You have airborne command centers that keep aloft pilots abreast of all friendly and enemy planes in the area. Planes are also equipped with IFF (identify friend or foe) devices that basically ping each other to confirm friendly status. The signals an these devices are encrypted and the challenge and password changes regularly. The same technology is used by ground air defense to confirm that aircraft are friendly or enemy prior to engaging one.

All branches support one another. All planes in an area of operation fall under a Joint Air Command Center and are tasked based on purpose. On any given day you will find Navy ground attack Aircraft supporting Army troops on the ground and Marine Corps jets being guided on attack missions by Air Force JTAC/TACP personnel....

In reality the services remain separate in name only. We are really a joint force.

MSG_A

Yes, we have GPS.

There is also a device called a transponder that puts out a constant code when it is on. It is referred to as IFF (identify - friend or foe) and lets anyone with an appropriate receiver know that we are on the same side.

The radio frequencies can be secured by encryption and "hopping" (or changing channels often and for not very long) which means codes aren't really needed. But aviators have their own slang anyway, so it probably would sound like code to a lot of people.

There is rivalry, of course. Navy and Marine Corps pilots go through the same training, but the Marines are far superior to start. The Air Force has their own training.

Animal

>GPS and INS (Inertial Navigation System)
>IFF (Identification of Friend or Foe) System
>Encrypted Radio
>Commcard

There is more trash talk among airframes in the AF than among the branches.

Pedro

im not a pilot, but im pretty sure they have GPS. I want to be a pilot though :]

Angel R

Do fighter jets and helicopters have a special device like a GPS??
- Yes Aircraft have both GPS and Inertial Navigation as back up.

Like if a Naval aviator and an Airforce pilot are in the air, how does the NAVAL aviator know that a 'friendly' is approaching him? is there some kind of technology that makes him conform this on his radar or does he just have to trust that the Airforce pilot is not lying on the radio??? (thats alot of trust if you ask me)
- There is a system call "IFF" Interogative Friend or Foe. If the other Aircraft has the correct code, they will present information to the pilot on screen that the aircraft is a friend or not.

Does the Coast Guard, NAVY, Army and Airfocre pilots have special flight codes that they use in conversations? and if so how does everyone memorize them?
- The use Secure Radio communications system to talk to each other. The codes are secret and change daily.

Also, the NAVY, Marines and Airforce are the only branches with fighter jets; Do they help out and participate with one another or is there a sought of mild rivalry since all branches are well trained and not dependent on one another??
- There are numerous join exercises and operations. Each unit has its specialties that the Theater commander can call upon to meet the mission requirements.

There is a lot more detailed information to your questions but for the sake of simplicity, I've given you the down and dirty.

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