Grain farmers alarmed by loss of GPS signal blamed on satellite fault

Problems with the Inmarsat 1-451 satellite have been blamed for the problems alarming farmers right along the east coast.

Location information provided by GPS tracking is critical to the seeding of the new season's crops.

GPS signals have revolutionised seeding with auto-steer tractors using location technology which need to be centimetre perfect.

Grain farmers are already well advanced with seeding and many have enjoyed a soaking rain courtesy of former Tropical Cyclone Ilsa on the weekend.

Victorian farmers said the weekend's rain amounted to an early autumn break, with one saying it's the best he's had in years.

Mark Hall, a Wedderburn mixed farmer, said 19-24 mm fell across the region on Saturday.

"The previous week we had anywhere from 13-20mm, it depended on where you were," he said.

"Yes, very much so, it's a good break, everything is coming very green, very quickly."

He said it would be good for early sowing and germination of weeds, to get a good kill, and provide feed for lambing sheep.

"The last two or three years have seen good early breaks, at the end of March or start of April. You couldn't order it any better, really," he said.

The loss of the Inmarsat signal is having an impact much wider than agriculture with boating and aviation services reporting connectivity issues as well, both in Australia and New Zealand.

Inmarsat has been contacted for comment and advice on the expected length of time it is expected necessary to repair the satellite problems.