NextNav and Tiami Networks Partner to Advance 5G Counter-UAS Detection Capabilities

Author : Mary Brown | Published On : 26 Aug 2026

NextNav has announced a strategic partnership with Tiami Networks to advance 5G counter-UAS tech designed to detect and track unauthorized unmanned aircraft systems. As a key sensing ecosystem partner, Tiami Networks will integrate its specialized capabilities into NextNav’s ground-based 3D positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) network. The joint solution utilizes integrated sensing and communications (ISAC) across NextNav’s licensed Lower 900 MHz band spectrum. This approach enables existing cellular infrastructure to double as a long-range radar-like detection system without compromising wireless bandwidth or network capacity.

By deploying wide-area airspace monitoring over low-band spectrum, the collaboration addresses an urgent security need for enterprise facilities, military bases, airports, and public venues. Traditional airspace monitoring systems often struggle with low-altitude drone activity or require expensive dedicated radar deployments. Utilizing ground-based 3D positioning architecture provides security operators with precise spatial awareness to locate, trace, and respond to airborne threats in real time.

Operational Validation and Testbed Capabilities in California

To rigorously evaluate the integrated platform, NextNav established a dedicated operational testbed in Santa Clara County, California. The test site measures long-range sensing performance in the 900 MHz frequency band while continuously delivering high-precision 3D positioning data. This environment allows engineering teams to refine threat detection algorithms and validate target tracking metrics under real-world atmospheric and environmental conditions.

Executive leadership from both companies emphasized that pairing low-band 5G spectrum with advanced sensing frameworks creates a highly scalable blueprint for airspace defense. Because the solution builds directly onto standard wireless network infrastructure, public safety authorities and facility managers can scale counter-drone coverage across vast geographical areas cost-effectively.

Strengthening National Infrastructure and Civil Airspace Defense

The integration of 3D geolocation technology into cellular networks comes at a time when rogue drone incidents pose increasing risks to critical national infrastructure. From securing commercial flight corridors to protecting industrial plants and government complexes, automated airspace awareness has become an essential pillar of physical security.

As NextNav expands its 5G PNT footprint, the company continues testing its UAS detection architecture in high-risk environments across the country. Combining positioning, timing, and non-line-of-sight sensing into a unified infrastructure offers a comprehensive, highly accessible defense framework designed to safeguard civilian populations and key strategic assets from evolving aerial threats.

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