NZ Government joins Australia in multi-million-dollar funding for improved form of GPS

The Government is investing in an improved form of GPS technology called S-BAS which can pinpoint a person's location to within 10cm.

Rugged terrain will no longer be a barrier to complicated rescue missions which means good news for rescue pilots.

"It's a game changer for us, it's probably the biggest thing to happen to our navigation since GPS itself," ARHT Pilot Rob Arrowsmith told 1 NEWS.

"What it means for us is the certainty of getting to the patient and getting the patient to the hospital."

The technology has been widely used in other parts of the world for the last ten years but won't be operational in New Zealand for at least another four.

The S-BAS is believed to help save hundreds of lives each year and it is currently being jointly funded by Australia.

It is unclear as to how much the New Zealand Government has invested in this, but Land Information Minister Eugenie Sage says Geo Science in Australia have invested $160 million as well as an extra $36 million to operate it.

After trialling the technology for two years, the government is confident it will help drive innovation.

Further funding won't be released until a provider is on board.