Consequences of a GPS crash?

Question

What would be the consequences of a partial or global crash of the Global Positioning System? Both civilian and military. Would national security be threathenen by such a problem?

Answer 1

I used to work for a company that made digital nautical charts (within the last 5 years) for ships.  Our charts were only qualified to be an aid to navigation.  Whatever law that regulates it states that paper charts are still to be the main tool for navigation.  

I'm sure this is true at least in a commercial sense.  If it were me I wouldn't rely solely on a GPS if my life depended on it.

To answer your original question, civilian: things like your cars gps to farming to construction to companies that use the gps for timing would be some examples .  Military would also have similar problems, I'm sure they would still manage to function.

Answer 2

That all depends on the level of reliance a user places on the system.

Miltary training for ground troops still includes maps and compasses, and all troops go through basic (ground) training first.

Airlines use other radio aids, and only rely on GPS when there are at least two systems onboard and functioning - for redundancy.  Navigation can still be done using maps, LORAN radio, VOR stations, etc., as do naval vessels.

Emergency services practise weekly with pencil and paper as a routine backup (usually early Sunday morning, for an hour).