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December 2015Volume 20, Issue 7

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Command Profile:Army Combined Arms Center-trAining

Gunnery Training Systems O LVC DemonstrationMaritime Simulation O Virtual Battlespace Integration

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Program Executive OfficerPEO STRI

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Departments2 editor’s PersPective4 ProGraM hiGhliGhts22 data Packets44 coMMand Profile46 teaM orlando47 resource center

Industry InterviewBrad feldMannPresident and CEOCubic Corporation

48

Features

6new tarGets for Gunnery traininGAs U.S. military training shifts to homestation exercises using complex scenarios based on intelligence about potential areas of operation, gunnery training systems are changing as well.By Harrison Donnelly

11down to the sea in siMulatorsEffective maritime training must not only mimic the real world to provide authentic experiences, but also must incorporate advanced learning features to ensure that critical thinking skills are addressed.By Karen e. THuermer

18lvc showcaseA coordinated demonstration bringing together 32 companies and government organizations at the I/ITSEC conference in Orlando, Fla., highlights the rise of the live-virtual-constructive concept in thinking about the future of military training.By Harrison Donnelly

35exercise traininGEven as new modeling and simulation technologies transform many aspects of military training, field exercises remain a mainstay of the military services’ efforts to develop new warfighters, reinforce and update the skills of those with experience, and strengthen the ability to cooperate and communicate.

24MaP of Major arMy traininG sitesInformation and commanders’ photos for key schools and training organizations.

34Military Training Technology provides an exclusive review of Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division’s leadership, including the five program directors:

• Research & Development Program

• Aviation Programs• Surface & Undersea

Programs• International Programs• Cross Warfare Programs

38BattlesPace PlatforMThe popularity of Virtual Battlespace, a widely used simulation training tool, is spurring development of new features that can be incorporated into its game environment.By PeTer BuxBaum

Who’s Who in naWCTsd

Special Feature:

The title of a recent AUSA Institute of Land Warfare work-shop—“Cyber: The Convergence of the Information and Operational Environment”—aptly describes one of the most important challenges and opportunities facing the U.S. military in the decades ahead. Nowhere is that convergence and challenge more important than in the training and simulation field.

Combining cyberspace and training represents a lot more than just offering courses on good cybersecurity practices, protecting training networks against intrusions or disseminating content through the web. Rather, it calls for thoroughly integrating the two domains in every aspect of operations.

Some of the interest in this convergence is the result of a vision outlined by General Ray Odierno, former Army chief of staff, who called for using cyber-techniques to accomplish missions through unit training at combat training centers.

Odierno’s idea led to the Cyber Support to Corps and Below (CSCB) pilot, which involves the inte-gration of cyber-effects via unit training at home station, at the Army’s combat training centers and in support of real-world missions.

The program took a step forward this fall, as the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division took a training rotation at the Joint Readiness Training Center ( JRTC), at Fort Polk, La. In the exercise, the brigade defended its systems and networks against the Cyberspace Opposing Force, which will chal-lenge the brigade’s cybersecurity during force-on-force training.

The rotation is the second at JRTC that has included CSCB pilot efforts. Earlier this year, the 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division completed a rotation for which cyber elements were integrated early into the training cycle. It incorporated cyber effects into training scenarios; trained and educated the brigade on threats, tools, tactics and capabilities at home station; integrated cyberspace operations into planning and targeting; provided cyberspace operations personnel to augment the brigade staff; and trained JRTC operations and opposing force personnel.

Harrison DonnellyeDiTor

Recognized Leader Covering All Aspects of Military Training Readiness

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Military Training Technology

Volume 20, Issue 7 • December 2015

eDitor’S PerSPectiVe

U.S. soldiers act as opposing forces and man a Panzer M113 A3/OSV-MBT while providing security from an operational post during Exercise Combined Resolve V at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels, Germany. The soldiers are assigned to 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment. [U.S. Army photo by Specialist John Cress Jr.]

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Program highlightS

The Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) 711th Human Performance Wing has awarded Cubic Global Defense a multi-year contract to develop and demonstrate a live-virtual-constructive (LVC) system for air combat training. The award is part of a larger program called the Secure LVC Advanced Training Environment (SLATE) Advanced Technology Demonstration (ATD).

AFRL formed the SLATE ATD team as a government/industry consortium, since each partner leverages unique expertise or key system understanding to support the overall ATD objectives. Cubic is designated the systems integrator working with partners to deliver LVC airborne and ground subsystems. While the overall purpose of blending synthetic environ-ments with live training in an LVC system is to enhance realism and improve the cost-effec-tiveness of training, the specific intent of the SLATE ATD is to prove technological feasibility and assess operability and productibility of LVC subsystems. Cubic and the SLATE partners plan to develop and demonstrate an LVC system at Technology Readiness Level 7.

“We are very proud to be a part of this esteemed consortium in developing what will be one of the most important training tech-nologies of our time,” said Bill Toti, president of Cubic Global Defense. “Cubic invented air combat maneuvering instrumentation (ACMI) back in the early 70’s, and we see LVC as the natural evolution of ACMI. LVC will provide an increased threat density, wider expanse of virtual airspace and an interoper-able multi-level secure environment where pilots can ‘train as they fight’ with their advanced sensor and weapons systems in the highest-fidelity environments.”

The overall approach in the SLATE ATD will be to employ fourth-generation aircraft with modified ACMI airborne subsystems repur-posed for multi-level encrypted LVC in both tethered and untethered training scenarios. The team will also evaluate extensibility of the technical solutions to the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. After successful demonstrations, the ATD will deliver specifications, use cases and technologies that can be used to support an LVC acquisition program.

Textron Systems Marine & Land Systems has been awarded a $17.4 million interim contractor training support contract from the U.S. Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command to provide next-level training to the Afghan National Army (ANA) for its four-wheeled mobile strike force vehicles (MSFVs). More than 600 MSFVs, based on Textron Systems’ Commando Select armored vehicle line, have been delivered to the ANA since 2012, with over 550 of these vehicles actively engaged in security operations in strategic locations across the country. The contract calls for the Textron Systems in-country team to provide on-the-job training (OJT) and mentorship, enabling ANA personnel to perform detailed maintenance and repair actions to sustain its MSFV inventory. In addition to OJT vehicle repair and maintenance training, Textron Systems will continue mentoring and training the ANA on inventory and supply system activities, as well as developing and delivering program instruction manuals.

Contracts Fund Air Force, Navy Training ServicesCAE has announced contracts valued at

more than $100 million (Canadian) to provide training services and simulation products for global military customers. The U.S. Air Force has exercised the option for the sixth year of aircrew training services provided by CAE USA as the prime contractor on the KC-135 Aircrew Training System (ATS) program. CAE USA will continue to provide classroom and simulator instruc-tion as well as upgrades, maintenance and support for all KC-135 aircrew training devices. In addition, the U.S. Navy has exercised the option for the second full-year of comprehen-sive T-44C aircrew training services provided at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas. CAE USA

provides T-44C aircrew training services under a contractor-owned, contractor-operated training program. CAE is providing classroom and simulator training for more than 500 students annually to support the Navy’s T-44C aircraft, which is used for multi-engine intermediate and advanced flight training. Finally, CAE will continue providing a range of maintenance and in-service support services for the German Air Force’s Eurofighter training devices as part of an industry team in Germany. CAE will have specific responsibility for maintaining the Eurofighter visual systems, including CAE Medallion-6000 image generators as well as projector and display systems.

Training Supports Afghan Strike Force Vehicle Maintenance

Research Seeks LVC System for Air Combat Training

www.MT2-kmi.com4 | MT2 20.7

Aegis Technologies has success-fully fielded a Vampire Institutional Training System (VITS) for class-room simulation at Sinclair College in Dayton, Ohio. Sinclair has incor-porated Vampire as part of a state-of-the-art learning lab included in the National UAS Training and Certification Center. The simulation will support both credit and non-credit courses, as well as training and research leveraging live, virtual and constructive technologies and partnerships. Sinclair experts will use the system to teach students emer-gency procedures, track simulation time versus flight time and provide after-action review capabilities. Instructors will create their own scenarios for training purposes focused on agriculture, search and rescue and infrastructure inspection among other civil UAS applications. The Vampire Unmanned Aircraft System provides a virtual environment allowing operators to train and rehearse operator and mission-level tasks for each system. Closely inte-grated and correlated with the FalconView flight planning software, which are currently used by

UAS operators, Vampire creates a virtual envi-ronment for training operator tasks, such as route and mission planning, as well as in-flight tasks, such as target tracking and reaction to emergency procedures. Vampire also provides tactical training scenarios on geo-specific terrain databases built from satellite imagery to produce visual quality that matches live systems, permit-ting operators to conduct mission rehearsals in remote areas of operation prior to deployment.

Compiled by KMI Media Group staff

Cubic Global Defense (CGD) has received new contract orders worth nearly $20 million for its Instrumentable-Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System Individual Weapon Systems (I-MILES IWS) from the Army Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation.

I-MILES IWS is integral to the quality of home-station training, advo-cates say, because it offers improvements to realism during training.

I-MILES IWS uses laser emitters that attach to military weapons and on-body sensors to replicate combat and records data for later review.

The user-friendly system features small, lightweight components for individual soldiers. It requires less time to attach small-arms transmitters and align a weapon than previous versions, and maintains alignment during an entire exercise.

“No one really knows what the future of war fighting will look like; therefore, there’s a need to have a balanced and full range of capabilities to better prepare our soldiers for any condition and environment,” said Bill Toti, president of CGD. “With our adaptive training equipment, soldiers can make

better use of training time by spending less on setup and calibration, and more on tactics to ensure that they are receiving the most realistic experience before being placed in

an actual war environment.”Earlier, the company

announced that it had delivered specialized training systems to the Ukrainian Army worth $1.7 million. The equipment is interop-

erable with their existing MILES and Joint Multinational Readiness Center training systems, allowing

the Ukrainian Army to train at the brigade level.

Agreement Distributes Hyper-realistic Surgical

Cut SuitCAE Healthcare has signed an exclu-

sive rights agreement to distribute the Strategic Operations (STOPS) Surgical Cut Suit and other simulation training prod-ucts outside the United States. Designed for point-of-injury care, the Surgical Cut Suit allows first responders and physicians to practice performing surgical and emer-gency procedures on patients with simulated traumatic, life-threatening injuries. STOPS simulates medical response field scenarios through the “magic of Hollywood,” with hyper-realistic training environments that include special effects, role players and simulated wounds. STOPS has developed a line of medical products that can be worn by actors or Standardized Patients to allow real-time interaction with a trauma patient. The Surgical Cut Suit and Tactical Combat Casualty Care/EMS Cut Suit vest can also be zipped around a manikin to add realism to a scenario.

Army Orders Additional Laser Engagement Systems

Simulation System Installed at UAS Training Center

www.MT2-kmi.com MT2 20.7 | 5

As U.S. military training shifts to home-station exercises using complex scenarios based on intelligence about potential areas of operation, gunnery training systems are changing as well.

Like other training programs, gun-nery training systems, which use a mix of virtual, laser and live-fire techniques, are emphasizing cost-effective simula-tion technology in the face of budget con-straints. At the same time, however, they must contend with revisions in war-fight-ing doctrine based on more than a decade of field operations.

“The Army has learned lessons across 14 years of recent combat and has accord-ingly revised its doctrine for the future. Any training system, gunnery or not, must re-flect that,” said Ernie Audino, senior vice president of military market development for Raydon.

Recent priorities have focused on the revitalization of homestation training, as well as the Army’s Decisive Action Train-ing Environment (DATE), which chal-lenges soldiers to solve tactical problems in real-world scenarios derived from actual threats, Adino noted. “Industry must work hard to rapidly develop training capabili-ties that will address both. In my opinion, DATE will drive a full spectrum of training objectives that virtual training capabilities will have to support. That’s the training ef-fectiveness side of the coin. The revitaliza-tion of homestation training, on the other hand, will be more about the logistics of training—that is, how do we make DATE training capabilities affordable and doable at homestation?

“Specific to gunnery training, how-ever, is the re-emphasis on the need to conduct combined-arms live-fire exer-cises much more frequently than we have in the recent past,” Audino continued. “There is no reason why virtual gunnery training capabilities should not respond to that. They can and should, as doing so will not only help improve unit profi-ciency, but also drive down the risk asso-ciated with multiple soldiers, locked and loaded, side by side, conducting a collec-tive live-fire-and-maneuver training event in the dark. That’s a worthwhile challenge to industry.”

At Saab Defense and Security USA-Training and Simulation, executives see the likely evolutionary path for gunnery training simulators as one of expanded training capability. “Their full potential has

essentially not been fully exploited—they are typically being used for basic gunnery skills using somewhat dated doctrine,” said Pat Wells, director marketing and sales for SAAB AB. “There is an evident need for weapon training standards to be improved to ensure they include all contemporary combat-critical tasks and skills required for operational success.

“The major armies are transitioning from an era in which a large percentage of units were deployed and their training programs were almost exclusively focused on counterinsurgency and stability opera-tions, to an era requiring a broader range of operational requirements, in which spe-cifics of the training environment are still emerging. Future virtual gunnery training systems will undoubtedly need to evolve to keep pace with developing training needs

SyStemS muSt contend with reviSionS in war-fighting doctrine baSed on more

than a decade of field operationS.

by harriSon donnelly

mt2 editor

Saab’s system is used for both precision gunnery training and combat/maneuver training in fighting vehicles, helicopters and vessels. [Photo courtesy of Saab AB]


against a backdrop of limited live-fire op-portunities,” Wells continued.

“Modern forces are increasingly oper-ating under global round-the-clock media coverage in highly complex terrains, both human and geographic,” observed Chuck Morant, vice president, global strategy and business development for CAE. “In-formation is being provided from numer-ous sensors operating throughout the air, land and littoral environments, making command, control, decision-making and the integration of these assets principal factors to incorporate into training. Ef-fective and flexible gunnery training so-lutions will remain critical to acquiring and developing the skills that effectively integrate intelligence, firepower and ma-neuver, thereby enabling individuals, crews and formations to act instinctively, intuitively and legally in highly complex environments.”

These training systems must also continue to take into account the unique needs of operators, observed Sébastien Lozé, senior marketing director for D-Box.

“Gunners are very special people,” he said. “”Their field of operation, compared to others, is always tactical. That’s the big difference between them and other trainees. If they are in an operation, the operation is tactical, by virtue of their role. They are never in an environment that is very clear. There is a lot of noise,

smoke and other things happening, and it is a complex environment to understand. When you are aboard a vehicle as a gun-ner, you need to rely on different cues to understand if things are going as planned or if there is an emergency situation or threat that you need to respond to pre-cisely and very fast.”

Users of D-Box’s motion systems can add special effects to anything generated by the simulator. [Photo courtesy of D-Box]


unique capabilitieS

In responding to changing military needs, each major player in this market is highlighting unique capabilities that en-able it to fulfill market needs.

CAE, for example, provides a fully man-aged service that enables military personnel to focus on the training delivered, accord-ing to Morant. “This includes the provision of software, hardware, support services and military subject matter expertise where ap-propriate. Our aim is to provide a world-class training service that enables our cus-tomers to benefit from the integration of modern technology with military expertise.

“Technologically, CAE’s gunnery train-ers are designed to produce crews capable of operating their vehicles effectively within a collective environment,” Morant said. “CAE’s solutions meet the training needs at the individual and collective lev-el, enabling the gunner, commander and driver to operate their vehicles proficiently. CAE’s gunnery trainers can be integrated and networked with other state-of-the-art simulation training devices to enhance the overall mission training capabilities in a virtual environment.”

CAE’s virtual training solutions are designed to be comprehensive systems “where the focus remains firmly on the student/instructor interface, and is sup-ported by precision metrics and scoring capabilities that measure success and en-able efficient student throughput,” Morant added, pointing to the ability of the com-pany’s classroom-based gunnery trainers to accommodate up to six students working with a single instructor.

Saab’s live simulation gunnery system is based on the company’s BT46 scanning laser technology, which can accurately simulate the true ballistic characteristics and mis-sile dynamics of any type of ammunition, while also correctly simulating visual cues for tracer, burst on target and obscuration.

“The high-fidelity simulation of the system ensures that the crew carries out the correct engagement procedures with-out introducing negative drills,” Wells ex-plained. “The use of laser-based simulation on ranges greatly reduces the financial and environmental burden of live firing.”

In addition, Saab’s virtual crew trainer allows an instructor to train and assess individuals or the crew as a whole. This includes the interaction required between gunner, commander and driver during the

acquisition, engagement, correction and destruction of a target and measures the key performance indicators as required for any particular training event.

A key part of Raydon’s strategy is to pay as much attention to the logistics of de-livering training as it does to the achieve-ment of the training objective itself. Every system is conceived and designed to drive down the hourly cost of training a soldier.

“That’s easier said than done, of course, but a key factor is our inclusion of multi-function capabilities into every system. That means each of our systems can be used for more than one purpose, and when that happens, systems don’t sit idle. It naturally

boosts utilization rates. When a unit has completed its gunnery ramp-up and no lon-ger has a priority need for virtual gunnery trainers, for example, it can continue to train to support maneuver training objec-tives on the same Raydon system. The end result—more soldiers train to standard, more frequently, on the same investment,” said Audino.

At Lockheed Martin, “Our gunnery train-ing systems are known for their immersive realism, delivering the maximum training experience,” said Jim Weitzel, vice president of training solutions. “Through our family-of-systems approach, we also deliver rapidly reconfigurable technologies that deliver the

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same training capability, but through differ-ent means, such as desktop trainers, part-task trainers or full simulators, so that they can be deployable as needed to meet customer requirements. For example, each of the five Advanced Gunnery Training System (AGTS) configurations includes the same full-fidelity AGTS software, databases and exercises, re-ducing overall device costs while meeting specific training needs.”

AGTS has been used for more than 20 years to prepare forces to transition from simulation to live fire, Weitzel noted, point-ing to a recent Marine Corps study showing that the system improves proficiency while curbing costs. “AGTS uses the Lockheed Martin-grown Scalable Advanced Graphics Engine, which leverages commercial gam-ing graphics to deliver incredible realism for warfighter training,” he added.

Another critical issue concerns the mo-bility and accessibility of gunnery simula-tion systems, which must be flexible to meet changing needs. “Time is the biggest factor,” said Bert Ges, account executive for ground training for Cubic. “That’s the big-gest thing is that the customer now needs. The Reserve component, for example, only trains 39 days a year. You don’t have time to drive the soldiers to the range, and spend a half hour on each round. With technology, we can do all that preliminary training in the armory.”

Cubic offers the Engagement Skills Trainers (EST), an easy-to-install system focused on marksmanship, collective ac-tion and judgmental use of force.

“What we’re doing with live-virtual-constructive training is to put it at the point of need. Before, you had to go to a

training center, but now you can do it at your home station or elsewhere. With the EST, instead of having a building, now we can put it in two cases and take it wher-ever you are. If you want to maintain your skills, or teach them to others, you can set up the trainer within 20 minutes, with the same capabilities. We want to push this to the point of need and get technology out there,” Ges said.

motion Simulation

As a maker of motion systems for de-fense simulators, D-Box’s focus in the weapons training area is on the idea that the sense of touch is the simplest and most straightforward of the senses, and thus a key to preparing gunnery system operators for the real-world demands of a weapons platform in action.

“The closest truth you can rely on is what you feel with your entire body—the attitude of the vehicle and the accelera-tion that the driver is inducing in the ve-hicle are giving you as much information as a vocal statement from someone else,” Lozé explained. “If the vibration of the ve-hicle or platform is giving you cues that your acceleration is happening, your body gets used to it and allows you to aim cor-rectly. That’s why being very tactical and operational, and adding other cues to rely on than the classical visual and audio cues is important.”

The D-Box system consists of two main domains—hardware and software. “The logic of our integration with different systems is that the actuators are animated and balanced by the D-Box firmware, which is driven by a

motion code. A motion code is a gateway that can be created by anyone based on our appli-cation programming interface. Any user of a simulation application can generate a motion code that will directly connect anything hap-pening in their application in real time to our firmware,” he said.

“Due to the flexibility of our API, D-BOX Motion Systems users can also add special effects to anything generated by the simulator,” Lozé continued. “For ex-ample, you may have a very-high-fidelity vehicle simulator that can duplicate all the vibrations for the pilot and gunner. But what if the vehicle is under attack, and there is a denotation near you—how do you feel that?”

Although such cues are traditionally not generated by a simulator’s host soft-ware, D-Box systems reproduce the vibra-tions and motions generated by flares, smoke and objects hitting the vehicle, and reproduce how a nearby explosion would influence the suspension of the vehicle.

“What you would feel from those can be replicated in the simulator,” said Lozé. “If you want to experience and learn how it would really feel like, you have to get the cue. You need to be used to feeling these tactical environment special effects on your vehicle. It will build your reflexes and get you ready for the field so you can concentrate on your aim, target and your objective, and not be disturbed or surprised by your vehicle’s movements.” O

For more information, contact MT2 Editor Hank Donnelly at [email protected] or search our online archives for related stories at www.mt2-kmi.com.

Advanced Gunnery Training Systems from Lockheed Martin are available for several configurations, including Stryker vehicles. [Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin]


effective maritime training muSt incorporate advanced learning featureS to enSure that critical thinking SkillS are addreSSed.by karen e. thuermer

mt2 correSpondent

Having the right experience is no guarantee that a maritime pilot will be ready for a job that requires him or her to board unfamiliar vessels while they’re in motion, quickly take stock of the situation and start mak-ing decisions almost immediately. The job is by its nature unpredictable. So while on-the-job experience is by far the best preparation for a mari-time pilot, a number of other critical skills are important, such as com-munication, composure and the ability to think quickly on one’s feet.

MT2 20.7 | 11 www.MT2-kmi.com

Effective training must not only mimic the real world to provide authentic experiences, but also in-corporate advanced learning features to ensure that critical thinking skills are addressed.

“Command experience and certification is the gold standard for making great pilots,” remarked Bill Rebarick, senior director of business develop-ment for advanced programs, Cubic Global Defense. “Pilotage is a tough job, and it’s not getting easier by the conditions in the industry. There are fewer pilots available, and those that are left are exhausted and have very little time in a position to learn.”

The difficulty of maintaining an adequate numbers of certi-fied pilots is creating a need for new training courses that can augment actual experience on the job, Rebarick suggested. Giv-en the high levels of skill and knowledge required to do the job certified, he sees a series of realistic seagoing experiences as the best methodology.

The challenges facing maritime pilots and aircrew today are similar to those faced by pilots and aircrew from all services, ob-served Bill Johnson, L-3 Link’s director of Navy business develop-ment. “As it relates to simulation, this focuses on the training chal-lenge of providing a maximum amount of high-fidelity immersion for aircrews so that a larger percentage of missions can be trained in the simulator without sacrificing training quality,” Johnson said.

Given the flat and declining budgets facing the services today, he continued, it is imperative that ground-based training contin-ues to work toward providing the most immersive environment possible so that training received in the simulator transfers seam-lessly to the aircraft.

“This is especially important for maritime aircrews,” Johnson said. “If there is one aspect that separates the maritime mission from its land-based counterparts, it is the extremely unforgiving environment in which maritime aircrews operate. Getting the maritime environment just right, such as inclement weather and a pitching carrier deck, is challenging yet an absolute require-ment for immersive training.”

Kevin Williams, vice president, Maritime Training Solutions Division, Buffalo Computer Graphics, concurred. “The biggest challenge that we have heard of from our customers is the ever-decreasing budgets of the training commands and other support entities charged with ensuring the readiness of the soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen.”

Williams pointed out that in a reduced military budget environment, training and other activities geared for readiness are often the first to be put on the shelf. “If the downward spiral continues for too long, it will be harder to properly man systems which are continuing to increase in complexity,” he warned.

replicating emergencieS

Cubic’s approach to the issue is to provide pilots with high-fidelity simulated experiences to augment actual experience and accelerate the path to mastery of the task.

“Cubic provides a training methodology that can replicate real-world emergencies and abnormal conditions that can safely and

inexpensively be created to evaluate a maritime pi-lot’s response in a manner that does not expose the pilot to harm or expose critical expensive and opera-tional equipment to damage,” Rebarick remarked.

The company offers the Learning Immersive Vir-tual Environment (LIVE), which is Cubic’s solution to bridging the gap between on-the-job and comput-er-based training.

“It all begins with a sophisticated set of tools, which allows us to quickly and efficiently convert user inputs, background data and interview results from subject-matter experts into usable training

deliverables in an immersive, engaging environment,” Rebarick said. “Imagine playing a video game where the game environment is dutifully replicated to the pilot’s environment. Further imagine being able to teach a pilot by using an avatar that can show them the gold-standard way to do their job, and watch over the pilot as they practice (play) in their environment.”

This training methodology incorporates human factors and re-quires usability experts who continually design, test and iterate a maritime pilot design to ensure success for customers.

“We integrate experienced instructional designers, cognitive psychologists, engineers, programmers, artists and storytellers into our vibrant team,” Rebarick said.

Cubic team members bring knowledge and expertise to the collaborative game-based training design and development pro-cess, he explained. Sophisticated tools are utilized to streamline the realistic game-based training environment to ensure educa-tional theory is blended with high-fidelity artwork and immer-sive and interactive gaming environments to craft successful learning solutions.

Typical learning games are created as unique “one-offs,” with non-repeatable processes that do not scale, or as “gamified” ver-sions of standard training modes, where game features such as leaderboards and accomplishment badges are added as minor en-ticements, Rebarick explained. But Cubic has created a produc-tion process that enables rapid specification of lesson content and game design.

“Cubic complements the fun and engagement of video games with the latest advances in educational theory and the time-tested

aspects of traditional learning methods,” he said.Currently, Cubic is developing a comprehen-

sive training solution for the Navy that will provide training capabilities for all watch stations that will serve on board Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) combat vessels. “This training will be offered for both the Freedom and Independence variants that the Navy operates and deploys, and is especially critical due to the small crew complement that serves aboard these ships,” Rebarick revealed.

Under the LCS contract, Cubic is designing, developing and delivering an integrated training

storyline of interactive multimedia instruction (IMI) to provide train-to-qualify (individual, self-paced) and train-to-certify (team, group-paced) capability for watch stations.

“This courseware solution combines the immersion and en-gagement of video games with the latest advances in educational theory and the time-tested aspects of traditional learning meth-ods,” Rebarick said. “This contract focuses on development and

Kevin Williams

Bill Rebarick

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delivery of the Immersive Virtual Ship Environment representing the LCS variants and an integrated set of Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM)-conformant IMI courseware products training operations and maintenance tasks for all watch stations.”

The initial order is for LCS engineering plant technicians and readiness control officers. Cubic will deliver more than 500 lessons in an integrated training story line using IMI Levels I-IV. The train-ing program provides comprehensive, immersive training for LCS watch-standers and maintainers.

“The uniqueness of this delivery lies in the ability to present an entirely new environment through implementing revolution-ary control methods which improves training time and familiarity within the space they are required to complete tasks,” Rebarick explained. “The program combines the best features of computer-based training and on-the-job training, while removing limitations and instructional shortcomings.”

L-3 Link, meanwhile, is currently deploying immersion fidel-ity upgrades to the F/A-18 community. “These upgrades include a dramatically improved display system through integration of L-3 Link’s HD-9 solution, G-seat motion cueing, G awareness, and au-ral cueing fidelity,” Johnson said.

These systems provide two major benefits, he indicated. First, they open up training tasks to simulation that previously was re-served for actual flights. This is accomplished by providing sensory cueing in the simulator that was not previously available. Second, they offer total immersion on all simulation tasks.

“The result is a training experience that more closely replicates the actual environment and leads to more ownership of training objectives and elimination of negative training cueing, such as al-tered scan pattern due to sensory limitations,” Johnson said.

Tactical examples of immersion fidelity benefits include re-alistic detection ranges, ability to maintain airspeed and altitude control without instrumentation reliance, more accurate power settings based on sounds, and the ability to make micro-control inputs “outside the cockpit.”

The additional emphasis on immersion is paying off across many mission sets, with Navy and Marine Corps F/A-18 air combat training representing a perfect case study, Johnson added.

radar operatorS

In addressing these needs, Buffalo Computer Graphics (BCG) has added to its line of radar emulations for training radar operators.

“BCG’s PCVM is an emulation of the Navy’s NEXGEN radar, and we are looking forward to being able to train sailors and radar navigation students on the use of this newer radar,” comment-ed Kevin Williams, vice president of BCG’s Maritime Training Solutions Division.

BCG has partnered with Computer Sciences Corp. to offer a smaller, lower-cost ship navigation simulator that operates at a stu-dent’s desktop. This system provides radar, Electronic Chart Dis-play and Information System, ship controls and out-the-window visual displays in a desktop package.

“We have recently introduced our PCS-300 Radar Simulator as our latest custom hardware/software system that drives real radar systems with a higher level of fidelity,” Williams added. “Lastly, we have updated our Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS), which has been updated to include a Fleet77 satellite phone and e-mail system.”

An example of BCG’s newer emulation products being used for training is at the Army Transportation School in Fort Eustis, Va. There, the company has a 15-seat training classroom used for ship navigation, GMDSS and C4ISR training. This multi-use trainer al-lows the Army to utilize a single classroom for three different types of training.

Since the simulation is all based on Windows applications, a single computer at each station can be configured by the instructor to run virtual trainers for navigation training using radar, ECDIS and simulated ship controls; GMDSS operations training using a required set of communication devices; and C4ISR training with various military radios operating in both encrypted and un-en-crypted modes.

The classroom has two instructor stations: one in the front of the classroom integrated with a smartboard for lecturing and demonstration, and a second instructor position in the rear of the classroom used for student testing.

modular platform

Another provider of military maritime simulation technology, Kongsberg Maritime, is now introducing the K-Sim line of mari-time simulators. Unlike previous generations of product, K-Sim uses the same core system architecture, software platform and user interface for all of its simulation systems.

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“The result is a completely modular platform with an extremely robust physics engine that can eas-ily support the simulation of the full scope of mari-time operations,” remarked Terje Heierstad, global product manager, Kongsberg Maritime, Simulation.

“K-Sim is scenario-centric and object-oriented, which means that the simulator and its various components, such as its engine, bridge, cargo or crane, can be added or removed as needed to cre-ate a training system that supports the full range of operational training, mission rehearsal and crew resource management,” Heierstad said.

The technology was first applied to offshore and anchor handling operations due to the heavy demands of these operations for precise physical modelling of such objects as various anchor types, wires and connection shackles. Subsequently, the same platform is being used to simulate vessel maneuvers and positioning of surface and sub-sea equipment for marine well containment and other complex procedures.

“In the next several years, the scope of K-Sim scenarios and training will be expanded to include all aspects of complex navy operations including traditional major combatant maneuvering, aircraft launch and recovery, as well as amphibious operations, in-cluding the loading/offloading of cargo and landing craft launch and recovery,” Heierstad revealed.

All naval clients use the simulators for training in ship han-dling, navigation and tactical skills. For naval engineers, the K-Sim Engine simulator is used for process understanding and engine room and engine control room operational training. “Navy clients also use the simulators for pre-mission planning and research, such as fatigue studies,” Heierstad added. “Our impression is that there is a trend moving towards more and more simulator training since the realism and training possibilities are increasing with new and more accurate simulation technology.”

warShip training

Transas Marine, a major international provider of high-tech equipment, software applications, integrated solutions and ser-vices for the maritime industry, is also active in the market for military maritime training. Building on its strength in commercial maritime operations, the company has joined with Thales to create the Full Warship Trainer concept (FWST).

“This modular simulation solution, which will be offered in various configurations, is the first of its kind to create a virtual simulation of an entire warship for training purposes. This en-compasses the ship’s control from the bridge, the work in the engine room, combat management system training and realistic training in use of sensors and weapons and organic units such as helicopters, inflatable boats and boarding teams,” according to Frans van den Berg, a retired rear admiral who serves as busi-ness development executive for naval simulation and training for Transas Marine.

Thales Germany is contributing its experience in developing generic and type-specific operational and tactical trainers, such as Action Speed Tactical Trainers and weapon control simulators, he added.

“Transas has a worldwide reputation and comprehensive know-how for implementing the latest generation of full bridge simu-lators and engine room trainers,” van den Berg explained. “Since both partners plan to integrate their already widely proven product portfolio, a first-generation configuration of the FWST is expected to be available to the market within the next two years.”

The system will enable individual teams to train various sce-narios, for instance as part of navigation training on the bridge, or a classic skirmish from an operations center. But as part of the final deployment preparation, all individual teams of a ship’s crew, such as the bridge, operations center and engine room, as well as deployed units, operate as a complex unit to develop the demanding interactive and information-exchange skills needed to get a crew and ship fully ready for operations.

“The FWST approach provides the option to train classic doc-trines and maritime scenarios, as well as expected future scenarios as part of mission preparation. In addition to playing the role of a training device, FWST can also assume an important function for the development of deployment principles and procedures, and also as part of future procurement projects. Its overall modular ap-proach also enables customers to flexibly expand individual train-ing elements, thus customizing their individual training center to their own needs,” van den Berg said.

courSe for the future

The irregular work hours of a maritime pilot make routine training difficult. With real-time and on-ship training increasing-ly more difficult, the need to train in an immersive environment where a pilot can receive a master-pilot certificate is growing. As the International Maritime Pilots Association has recognized, “practi-cal minimum training standards, certification requirements and operational procedures to provide effective coordination between pilots and ship personnel, taking due account of ship bridge pro-cedures and ship equipment, would contribute to maritime safety.”

Consequently, Rebarick sees immersive game-based learning as providing an excellent way to meet the standards that are recog-nized as a sound method for training. “Over the next three to five years, Cubic expects to see the demand for training in an off-hull environment growing substantially,” he said.

Cubic is developing a comprehensive training solution for the Navy that will provide training capabilities for all watch stations that will serve on board Littoral Combat Ship combat vessels. [Image courtesy of Cubic Corporation]


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In a broad sense going forward, Rebarick suggested, the future holds a significant growth in digital content for training, a demand for less training time to achieve proficiency, and more “anywhere, anytime” training.

“As the piloting of maritime craft also evolves with the adap-tion of new technologies, training requirements will need to adapt,” he said. “Changes in the operating environments, with the onset of new technologies such as remotely piloted watercraft, along with increasing complex maritime environments and oper-ating in crowded ports, mean that on-going training will need to adapt quickly.”

Another important aspect of successful maritime simulation is the projectors for day and nighttime training used in everything from single-person rib trainer simulators up to ships’ full-scale bridge simulators requiring a large field of view.

High-quality, accurate and stable images are important in order to feel immersed and train effectively for complex and risky opera-tions. Completely immersed synthetic environments put require-ments to the simulator’s system resolution and system brightness, and it is important that the simulator’s visual meets the specified criteria for detection, orientation, recognition and identification of an object. Depending on the type of simulator and type of training given, there are different requirements to resolution, brightness, and black levels of the visual.

One company in this field is Barco, which offers a variety of specifically designed high-resolution projectors with differ-ent technologies for the different types of requirements needed.

The high resolution is important for reducing the number of chan-nels needed in a system and thereby decreases maintenance costs while maintaining high total system resolution.

Over the next three to five years, Johnson predicted, immer-sion fidelity technology combined with other rapidly developing technologies such as live-virtual-constructive will ensure that air-crews are training in a secure, high-fidelity environment. “This environment will test aircrews to their limit, while driving down costs to the services at the same time,” Johnson said.

He also sees advances in training technology corresponding to advances in the understanding of the science of learning.

“Learning centered on individual achievement will replace training focused on very specific functionality,” Johnson said. “Some of the most encouraging advances in technology in this regard include performance assessment tools and adaptive learn-ing protocols. These solutions continuously monitor student per-formance and present scenarios to the student based on decisions made during the training event.”

With government funds getting continually smaller, Williams foresees a need to have smaller, more portable training systems that would allow the simulator to be deployed aboard ship or at a central location for training without the need for bridge teams or individual sailors to travel to a larger training center. O

For more information, contact MT2 Editor Hank Donnelly at [email protected] or search our online archives

for related stories at www.mt2-kmi.com.


A coordinated demonstration bringing together 32 companies and government organizations at the I/ITSEC conference in Orlando, Fla., highlighted the rise of the live-virtual-constructive (LVC) concept to a central role in thinking about the future of military training.

The conference, held November 30-December 4, featured Opera-tion Blended Warrior (OBW), a hypothetical exercise in which a hu-manitarian crisis in a notional U.S. ally develops into the full range of conventional military operations involving nearby countries, from emergency rescue to air strikes and an amphibious landing.

The demonstration, for which the National Training and Simula-tion Association (NTSA) provided logistic and administrative support, featured 15 “vignettes,” or aspects of the unfolding crisis. Participants showed how their capabilities can work together to achieve desired outcomes and help prepare personnel for real-world operations.

The 15 vignettes were divided into five blocks or stages: “disaster strikes,” “immediate response,” “countering exploitation,” “securing the skies” and “forward from the sea.”

Preparation of the project, which was initially suggested by Cap-tain Wes Naylor, commanding officer of the Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division (NAWCTSD), stretched over much of 2015. Government and industry experts met on a regular basis to develop the scenario—in which the nation of Balboa contends with a disaster and hostile actions by unfriendly neighbors—and integrated the com-plex systems involved.

Participants also underscored the importance of those integration ef-forts as critical to the success of LVC initiatives. “True LVC integration is a problem that has been worked on for many years,” noted Marcus Boyd, L-3 Link’s senior manager for Air Force business development. “Unfortu-nately, the multitude of proprietary methods/standards has exacerbated the complexity of this problem. Hav-ing events such as OBW provides an opportunity to work through this problem in a collaborative setting. This is primarily done by capturing lessons learned to be used by all for integrating an LVC event and de-termining the best-of-breed capabilities for a particular event.”

Along with Rockwell Collins, Cubic and CAE, L-3 Link was a sponsor of the event, for which Cisco provided essential networking equipment.

Stepping back from the event itself, executives involved agreed that the LVC concept is becoming a dominant one in the field, espe-cially at a time of limited resources.

“For a variety of solid reasons, LVC training will play an increas-ingly important role in the future. It has the potential to improve both training effectiveness and training efficiency. LVC will also allow training involving systems and situations that are nearly impossible to create in live training alone, yet will provide nearly the same level of

realism and fidelity,” said Aptima Fel-low Webb Stacy, Ph.D.

“LVC training is very important to the readiness of our service-mem-bers,” added Bob Kleinhample, direc-tor of simulation and training systems for SAIC. “With the greater emphasis on home station training, our ser-vices require LVC training that is cost-effective, more available and able to replicate the complexities of the warf-ighter. The LVC demonstration will

provide examples of what is possible and how industry can help enable this realistic training.”

Following are reports from a few of the 24 corporate participants. NAWCTSD, NTSA and six other military commands were also involved.

aptima

Aptima demonstrated its during-and-after-action review products, as well as PM Engine, a performance measurement engine.

“We will show how a training event is far more than just an exer-cise; it’s something that can be measured and have training value de-rived from the measurement in future years,” said Principal Software Engineer Michael Knapp. “We also plan to participate in events with multiple human actors alongside virtual and constructive entities. We want to showcase our interoperability with many different hard-ware simulators from multiple manufacturers, as well as our focus on the human.”

cae

CAE showcased two solutions as part of OBW. The MQ-9 Reaper UAS mission trainer was used to provide ISR and strike capabilities

i/itSec demonStration highlightS the growing importance of live-virtual-conStructive training.

by harriSon donnelly, mt2 editor

Bob Kleinhample

Marcus Boyd


during the OBW mission. This UAS simulator includes an immersive synthetic environment that provides an ideal platform for ab-initio training, pilot training and sensor operator training. The MQ-9 Reaper UAS mission trainer features aircraft-specific operational scenarios tailored to customers’ training needs; high-fidelity, accurate sensor simulation; Common Database; physics-based computer generated forces; and support for distributed mission operations and training.

The Aeromedical Evacuation Training System was featured dur-ing the OBW aeromedical evacuation scenario. CAE’s demonstration included a C-130 fuselage trainer measuring approximately 28 feet in length and outfitted for the aeromedical evacuation mission. This par-ticular C-130 fuselage trainer was delivered to the Air Force and used at Dobbins Air Force Reserve Command, Ga., immediately following I/ITSEC. Inside the C-130 fuselage trainer were human patient simula-tors developed by CAE Healthcare.

cubic

In the air domain, Cubic integrated its P5 pod with the Cubic Miniaturized Encryptor, and the Individual Combat Aircrew Debrief System into Strike assets. The air domain integrated with ground sys-tems that included the Engagement Skills Trainer 3000, Reconfigu-rable Vehicle Simulator and Dynamic Social Media Environment.

“Cubic’s role in Operation Blended Warrior is a substantial and tangible demonstration of our commitment to products and solutions in the LVC arena, including interoperability among our own products,”

a company executive explained. “Our holistic systems integration ap-proach to the C4ISR environment allows Cubic to remain agnostic in a blended training environment. This is specifically demonstrated by our integration of Cubic products with those of our L-3 partners in our booth on the show floor, as well as the overall integration within the OBW exercise.”

flightSafety

FlightSafety showcased the EC135 Demonstrator and Vital 1100 IG in the command/control, convoy, medevac, and cyber vignettes. The EC 135 helicopter Matrix system, representing a civilian helicop-ter with EMS and freight carrying capability, engaged in “free flying” in the scenarios in response to various scripted events, in coordination with other free flying elements as well.

The goal was to demonstrate the ability to participate in an in-teroperability event, according to the company, which planned to uti-lize environmental database build tools to convert an NPSI terrain/imagery dataset into a Vital runtime database with quick turn-around capability, including model development/integration.

l-3 link

L-3 Link Simulation & Training provided two SimuStrike Part Task Trainers—a virtual and “live” surrogate F-16 for air-to-air and air-to-ground operations. The company also provided a virtual adversary

TRU_MTT_NOV_7.375x5.25.indd 1 11/2/15 1:50 PMTRU_MTT_NOV_7.375x5.25.indd 1 11/2/15 1:50 PM


fighter aircraft using a high-fidelity and reconfigurable desktop trainer.

“The live surrogate is a unique use of one of our simulators to replicate a live (real person/real equip-ment) participant,” Boyd explained. “A live-range te-lemetry pod commonly carried by Air Force and Navy fighters is directly connected to the SimuStrike like it would be connected to the actual aircraft. This pod is then connected to a live-range ground station.

“The only way to get information from and to the SimuStrike is via the pod/ground station. This effec-tively simulates the information path between a live flyer and virtual players/constructive entities that would be used in a real LVC event. The live surrogate will then be paired with its virtual wingman (the other SimuStrike) in a different booth to fly missions highlighting a distributed capability,” he continued.

rockwell collinS

Products showcased by Rockwell Collins, which was involved in 10 of the 15 vignettes, include Realfires, a targeting training solution that uses both real and virtual environments, and the EP-8100 image generation system. It also highlighted several LVC innovations, such as LVC-enabled avionics developed for the Office of Naval Research and prototypes of LVC-enabled range equipment, which will provide new, flexible training for 4th and 5th generation aircraft.

“When you look at the range of capabilities we at Rockwell Collins bring to bear on the LVC domain, both for training and test and evaluation applications, you see that we are perhaps the only company that can bring everything from aircraft and vehicle simulators to training range infrastructure, multilevel secure communications and cockpit enhancements to fully realize the potential of the LVC paradigm. In particu-lar, as LVC begins to embrace full integration of live entities, we are uniquely poised to address those chal-lenges,” said Chip Gilkison, director, strategy, LVC for Rockwell Collins.

Saic

SAIC demonstrated the high-fidelity cloud network component of the SAIC Integrated Training Edge solution.

“This capability delivers highly engaging applications via the cloud to lower-end and typically available user devices and platforms,” Klein-hample explained. “It is a significant breakthrough because previous efforts to deliver engaging applications via the cloud failed because graphic processing units (GPUs) did not virtualize well. SAIC and VM-ware partnered together on delivering an innovative solution where simulation applications requiring the GPUs are now able to have the entire solution delivered via the cloud.

“SAIC will demonstrate this during OBW by using several of VT MAK’s simulation applications to be fully accessed via the cloud and operated on low-end computing devices such as zero clients, laptops and tablets,” he added

vt mÄk

VT MÄK led the Maritime Threat vignette and supported many oth-ers. The company’s VR-Forces Computer Generated Forces platform provides naval vessels, civilian shipping, pirate boats and a rotary-wing UAV search and destroy mission, along with ground and unmanned vehicle threats. The DI-Guy Scenario and ECOSim tools, meanwhile, provide tactical simulation of ground forces defending a power plant, civilian populations in distress during the convoy missions, and tar-gets for CAS missions.

VR-Forces also provides situational awareness and demonstration support. MÄK is helping the preparation phases of the exercise by pro-viding VR-Exchange gateways and the MÄK Data Logger for scenarios recording and playback. Throughout planning and preparation and during the exercise, VR-Exchange has been used as a gateway between participants’ booth LANs and the exercise LAN, helping protect the network from unwanted traffic.

“This demonstrates that VT MÄK is a leader in simulation interop-erability and a key provider of LVC simulation tools, and also that MÄK tools are critical components of a successful distributed simulation event,” said Brian Spaulding, director of contract research and devel-opment and trainer development.

Even as they have worked to bring the OBW demonstration to-gether, participants have also been looking ahead to future projects. O

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Study Examines Role, Training of Combat MedicsAs the Army draws down its presence in

overseas conflicts, Army combat medics need to expand their clinical skills as they transition from the battlefield to other duty assignments across the military medical community. In response, ECS has undertaken a research project designed to identify future training require-ments for Army medics. While their primary mission is still to provide emergency medicine on the battlefield, their role also encompasses

providing varying levels of support at medical treatment facilities such as battalion aid stations, clinics, and hospitals. In this capacity, the combat medic works under the supervi-sion of physicians and alongside other medical professionals. The research project will identify required clinical skills and associated training requirements to develop a proof-of-concept application that delivers simulated scenarios to teach and enable the practice of key skills,

such as patient interviews; data collection and synthesis; diagnosis; and development of a management plan. The proof of concept developed through this effort will demonstrate the feasibility of delivering simulation content across mobile platforms and operating systems to allow combat medics to become proficient in a variety of clinical settings. An effectiveness evaluation will use the proof of concept to assess the impact these capabilities have on learning.

Gunnery Trainer Enables Training With Live Crew

The Armory-Based Unstabilized Crew Gunnery Trainer (UGT-C) from Raydon is the latest member of the UGT family and capital-izes on the 590 Unstabilized Gunnery Trainer-Individual (UGT-I) trainers currently being fielded by the Army National Guard to all states and territories. While the UGT-I allows the individual gunner to bring his own gunnery skills to an expert level using a synthetic driver, commander and instructor in a self-paced

training environment, the UGT-C allows the now-proficient gunner to train with a live crew, bringing proficiency to their live-fire events. UGT-C’s addition of driver, commander and I/O provides invaluable crew training at a fraction of the cost of traditional non-modular systems and was specifically designed for space-efficient armory deployment. UGT-C brings the power of the Virtual Combat Operations Trainer into the armory.

Site Offers High-Fidelity Military ModelsAegis Technologies has launched a new Aegis

Elements website offering customers hundreds of high-fidelity models, a free model “download of the month” plus online requests for custom 2-D and 3-D model quotes.

The new Aegis Elements site is loaded with high-fidelity, real-time, military 3-D models that have been custom built and compiled over the last two decades by leading 3-D artists, designers and developers for use in simulators, gaming applications, demos, STEM-based education programs and more. Users can search Aegis Elements for hundreds of 3-D models, including articulated ground vehicles, maritime vessels, aircraft, missiles and weaponry. A customer’s search criteria can be filtered by level of detail, country code, damage

states and national markings. Aegis Elements 3-D models can be designed for real-time simula-tions featuring low polygon counts and high-resolution textures. Models can be integrated with numerous Geospatial datasets and 2-D/3-D viewing applications.

3-D System Trains for Emergency

AnesthesiaThe Virtual Heroes Division of

Applied Research Associates has released HumanSim: Sedation and Airway, a 3-D virtual trainer for administering emergency anesthesia and managing breathing. This marks the first time the software, which Virtual Heroes developed for the Army’s Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center, is available to the public. The trainer couples an immersive 3-D training environment with an advanced phys-iology engine. The software allows physicians, nurses, medics and other emergency personnel to prac-tice rapid sequence induction and moderate sedation, techniques for quickly sedating and intubating criti-cally injured patients. Trainees are challenged by 10 separate scenarios, with patient complications such as airway trauma and multiple drug interactions, covering a very wide variety of patient situations.


Compiled by KMI Media Group staff

Simulation Environment Supports Team-based Scenarios

Aptima has contributed DDD, a simulation environment designed for team-based scenarios such as military and first-responder exercises, to the open-source software community, where it’s now available for free on GitHub. Aptima developed DDD, which stands for the “distributed dynamic decision-making” environment, as a platform to research the effectiveness of multi-participant teams, particularly the communica-tions and collaboration in scenarios such as air battle operations, joint task force commands and disaster response. Using DDD, researchers can simulate an earthquake scenario, for example, in order to test different emergency management protocols, first-responder team structures, and communication channels. To create scenarios that represent the physical world with a birds-eye top-down view, DDD’s Visual Scenario Generator lets users flexibly set up scenarios without programming. Global users can script scenarios as varied as military conflicts to industrial acci-dents to natural disasters, specifying the environ-ment or terrain, human roles, communications networks, and command chains, and the types of vehicles or aircraft involved. DDD supports voice and chat between players, as well as white-boarding. Game assets can be assigned with attributes and capabilities.

Meggitt Training Systems has intro-duced the FATS100e, an extension of the FATS M100 and a major expansion in weapons training capability, introducing new features such as Crytek-based 3-D lanes, automatic coaching and VBS3-based collective training. The 3-D lanes provide visually realistic and highly detailed terrains and targets, including weather, and striking visual effects including wind-blown environments, birds in flight, dirt splashes and explosions. Automatic coaching has never been available in the small-arms training market, and collective training is new

to the VBS3 system. The new system provides an array of functionality for both instructor and trainee, delivering weapon handling and shot placement analytics, coaching tools that automatically highlight trainee results for rein-forcement or correction, and enhanced graphic capabilities for an all-encompassing immer-sive training platform. With the new features and expansions, FATS100e will offer training advancements delivered per Army and Marine Corps instructional requirements, including the latest technological developments to meet the needs of combat forces worldwide.

Interactive Air Environment Enhances Air Force Trainers

UFA has enhanced Air Force T-1A Operational Flight Trainers with the company’s ATWorld Interactive Air Traffic Environment solution. Working with L-3 Link Simulation & Training, the prime contractor, UFA integrated ATWorld on T-1A Ground-Based Training System simula-tors and the program’s pilot instructor training syllabus. During crew training sessions, ATWorld dynamically and autonomously simulates an air traffic control environment, including back-ground air and ground traffic, contextually

correct multi-frequency radio communications and a virtual air traffic controller. The crew inter-acts with the virtual air traffic controller using UFA’s ATVoice voice recognition and response product. T-1A crew training sessions can now focus on increasing situational awareness, stan-dard and effective communications with ATC, and operating in a congested air traffic environment. ATWorld replicates the real-world environment for specific locations so that crews are able to train on and around airports.

Visual System Upgrades F-22 Raptor TrainingBoeing has completed its upgrade of all Air Force F-22 Raptor

Mission Training Centers with its high-fidelity Constant Resolution Visual System (CRVS). The system trains pilots in a more realistic visual environment than current simulators and allows them to experience extreme maneuvers that typically are only practiced in a simulator. The final CRVS installations were recently done by Boeing and the Air Force at Tyndall AFB, Fla. Simulators at Hickam AFB, Hawaii; Elmendorf AFB, Alaska; and Langley AFB, Va., also have the system. Boeing’s patented CRVS display is the centerpiece of the training suite and provides high-resolution imagery for pilots with nearly 20/20 acuity in an immersive, 360-degree visual environment. By using off-the-shelf projectors, the system takes advantage of the rapidly emerging commercial technology. CRVS, first delivered in 2010, is found in a variety of other aircraft simulators, including the F-15 Eagle, AH-64 Apache, M-346 Master, BAE Hawk and F-16 Fighting Falcon. A member of the F-22 Raptor team with Lockheed Martin and Pratt & Whitney, Boeing develops, integrates and delivers F-22 aircrew and maintenance training systems to the Air Force, along with logistics and sustainment services.

Weapons Trainer Offers Automatic Coaching


fort huachuca, ariz.Intelligence Center

Maj. Gen. Scott D. BerrierCommanding Generalhttp://huachuca-www.army.mil

fort irwin, calif.National Training Center

Brig. Gen. Joseph M. MartinCommanding Generalwww.irwin.army.mil

fort sam houston, texasArmy Medical Department Center and School

Maj. Gen. Stephen L. JonesCommanding Generalwww.cs.amedd.army.mil/

fort wainwright, alaskaNorthern Warfare Training Center

Lt. Col. Mick BraunCommandantwww.wainwright.army.mil/nwtc

joint Base lewis-Mcchord, wash.Yakima Training CenterLt. Col. Jason Everswww.lewis-mcchord.army.mil/yakima

Brig. Gen. Joseph M. Martin

Lt. Col. Jason Evers

Maj. Gen. Scott D. Berrier

Command Sgt. Maj. Dennis Defreese

fort Bliss, texasArmy Sergeant Majors Academy

Command Sgt. Maj. Dennis DefreeseCommandanthttp://usasma.armylive.dodlive.mil

Maj. Gen. Stephen L. Jones

Lt. Col. Mick Braun

5

fort leonard wood, Mo.Maj. Gen. Kent D. SavreCommanding GeneralBasic training. Also provides engineering, chemical warfare and military police OSUT.www.wood.army.mil

CBRN SchoolBrig. Gen. Maria R. Gervaiswww.wood.army.mil/newweb/chemical

Engineer SchoolBrig. Gen. James H. Raymerwww.wood.army.mil/usaes

Military Police SchoolBrig. Gen. Keven Vereenwww.wood.army.mil/usamps

Brig. Gen. James H. Raymer Brig. Gen. Keven Vereen

Brig. Gen. Maria R. GervaisBrig. Gen. Kent D. Savre

3

fort lee, va.Ordnance Corps and SchoolBrig. Gen. Kurt J. Ryanwww.goordnance.army.mil

Quartermaster SchoolBrig. Gen. Ronald Kirklinwww.quartermaster.army.mil

Transportation Corps and SchoolBrig. Gen. Michel M. Russellwww.transportation.army.mil

Brig. Gen. Ronald Kirklin Brig. Gen. Michel M. RussellBrig. Gen. Kurt J. Ryan

2 fort jackson, s.c.Maj. Gen. Roger L. Cloutier Jr.Garrison Commanderlargest basic training location.http://jackson.armylive.dodlive.mil

Soldier Support InstituteCol. Richard J. Nieberding Jr. Includes Adjutant General School, Financial Management School, Army School of Music, Non Commissioned Officer Academywww.ssi.army.mil/

Col. Richard J. Nieberding Jr.

Maj. Gen. Roger L. Cloutier Jr.

4

Brig. Gen. Scott McKean Brig. Gen. Peter L. JonesCol. Andrew C. HilmesMaj. Gen. Austin S. Miller

1

fort Benning, Ga.Maj. Gen. Austin S. MillerCommanding GeneralManeuver Center of Excellence

Col. Andrew C. HilmesGarrison CommanderBasic training. Also provides infantry and cavalry scout One Station Unit Training (OSUT).www.benning.army.mil

Armor CenterBrig. Gen. Scott McKeanwww.benning.army.mil/armor

Infantry SchoolBrig. Gen. Peter L. Joneswww.benning.army.mil/infantry/infantry.htm

west Point, n.y.U.S. Military Academy

Lt. Gen. Robert L. Caslen Jr.superintendent

www.westpoint.edu

fort Polk, la.Joint Readiness Training Center

Brig. Gen. Timothy P. McGuireCommanding General

www.jrtc-polk.army.mil

fort Bragg, n.c.Army Special Operations

Center of ExcellenceMaj. Gen. James B. Linder

Commanding Generalwww.soc.mil/swcs

orlando, fla.PEO Simulation, Training &

InstrumentationMaj. Gen. Jon Maddux

Program executive officerwww.peostri.army.mil

Grafenwoehr, Germany7th Army Joint Multinational

Training CommandBrig. Gen. Christopher G. Cavoli

www.eur.army.mil/JMTC

joint Base langley-eustis, va.Army Training and Doctrine Command

Gen. David G. PerkinsCommanding Generalwww.tradoc.army.mil

fort Gordon, Ga.Army Signal School

Brig. Gen. Thomas A. Pughwww.signal.army.mil

fort knox, ky.Maj. Gen. Peggy Combs

Commanding GeneralCadet Command

www.knox.army.mil

Lt. Gen. Robert L. Caslen Jr.

Maj. Gen. Peggy Combs

Gen. David G. Perkins

Maj. Gen. James B. Linder

Brig. Gen. Thomas A. Pugh

Brig. Gen. Timothy P. McGuire

Maj. Gen. Jon Maddux

Brig. Gen. Christopher G. Cavoli

1

3

62

4

fort sill, okla.Maj. Gen. John G. RossiCommanding GeneralBasic training. also provides artillery osuT.http://sill-www.army.mil

Air Defense Artillery SchoolBrig. Gen. Christopher L. Spillmanhttp://sill-www.army.mil/aDaschool

Field Artillery SchoolBrig. Gen. William A. Turnerhttp://sill-www.army.mil/usaFas

Brig. Gen. William A. Turner

Brig. Gen. Christopher L. SpillmanMaj. Gen. John G. Rossi

5

fort leavenworth, kan.Mission Command Training Program

Col. Edward T. BohnemannCommanderhttp://usacac.army.mil/organizations/cact/mctp

Combined Arms Center-TrainingBrig. Gen. Mark J. O’NeilDeputy Commanding Generalhttp://usacac.army.mil/organizations/cact

Col. Edward T. Bohnemann Brig. Gen. Mark J. O’Neil

6

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Major General Jonathan A. MadduxProgram Executive Officer

for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation

U.S. Army

Major General Jonathan A. Maddux is the Program Ex-ecutive Officer for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI).

A native of Michigan, Maddux entered the Army as an enlisted soldier in 1976. After a three-year enlisted tour with the 82nd Air-borne Division, he earned a Bachelor of Science in English Lan-guage and Literature and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Operations Research Analysis from Eastern Michigan Univer-sity and was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the U.S. Army. His postgraduate education includes: a Master’s degree in Admin-istration from Central Michigan University, a Master’s degree in Telecommunications from University of Colorado (Boulder) and a MSST in Strategy from the United States Army War College. His military education includes the Signal Officer Basic and Advance Courses, Project Management Course, Defense Systems Manage-ment College, Army Command and General Staff College and the Army War College.

Maddux has held key staff positions at the tactical, operation-al/joint and strategic levels. His prior assignments include: Assis-tant to the Principal Military Deputy, Assistant Secretary of the Army Acquisition, Logistics and Technology [ASA(ALT)]; deputy commanding general, Support, Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom; Program Executive Officer Ammunition/commanding general, Picatinny Arsenal; Chief of Staff, Office of the ASA(ALT), Penta-gon, Washington, D.C.; director for Army Evaluation Task Force Integration, Directorate for Program Manager for Future Com-bat Systems (Brigade Combat Team); project manager for Future Combat Systems Network Systems Integration; executive officer, Aviation and Intelligence and Electronic Warfare Systems Direc-torate, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Research, Development and Acquisition); Staff Officer, Aviation and Intel-ligence and Electronic Warfare Systems Directorate, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Research, Development and Acquisition); and commander, Signal Detachment, 75th Ranger Regiment, after a successful company command of B Company, 38th Signal Battalion. Maddux also served as an enlisted military police in the 82nd Airborne Division MP Company and 301st POW Military Police Brigade.

Maddux’s awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit with four oak leaf clusters, the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters, Army Commendation

Medal with five oak leaf clusters, Army Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal with two service stars, Southwest Asia Service Med-al, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with service star, Global War on Terrorism Medal, NATO Medal, Kuwait Liberation Medal, Joint Meritorious Unit Award, Master Parachutist Badge, Korean and French Parachutist Badges, Air Assault Badge, Department of the Army Staff Identification Badge and the coveted Black and Gold Ranger Tab.

Q: The 2016 “strategy map” for PEO STRI lists its first goal to “align portfolio to support Force 2025 and testing priorities.” What will PEO STRI be like when this goal is achieved? How do you plan to get there, and how will you know if you are making progress as you go along?

A: Beginning in May 2014, and continuing to this day, we reorga-nized to more closely align to other U.S. Army organizations. We implemented a G staff structure and realigned our project man-agement offices into more functionally-oriented organizations to meet both current Army needs and posture ourselves to meet fu-ture Army simulation, training, testing and cyber requirements.

Our inaugural Long Range Investment Requirements Anal-ysis (LIRA) charters our course for the future by leveraging legacy and new project planning. LIRA’s intent is to inform and shape our future funding (program objective memorandum (POM)) submissions. In addition to evaluating our current proj-ects, LIRA addresses emerging requirements including cyber


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threat and cyber collective training programs, the Integrated Live, Virtual and Constructive Test Environment (ILTE), the Army Tac-tical Engagement Simulation System (ATESS) and the Training Instrumentation System (TIS), a single-instrumentation solution for the future live training environment.

As an integral part of our annual LIRA, we are also establish-ing a sustainable science and technology (S&T) insertion strategy. This includes identifying technology needs and gaps, defining and establishing S&T governance and driving S&T investments in the Army and our industry counterparts.

Finally, in conjunction with our partner, the Combined Arms Center (CAC), we are introducing new programs, specifically the Synthetic Training Environment (STE), through the use of a Col-laborative Environment as the “technology incubation center” for STE development and maturation. Our ultimate goal is to en-hance realistic training in complex environments to help build cohesive teams who not just survive, but thrive in conditions of chaos and ambiguity.

Q: PEO STRI recently held a Synthetic Training Environment Technology/Industry Day to provide industry and academia the opportunity to hear the details of the forthcoming STE innovation. What goals does the Army have for STE innovation?

A: The STE is a collaborative environment that will explore and use technologies from industry, academia, and the government’s

science and technology labs to harness new technologies to pre-pare units and develop leaders at home stations to fight and win our nation’s wars.

It combines action from live, virtual, constructive and game-based training to populate mission command systems with data, allowing for a more realistic common operating picture for the commander. The STE will employ “leap ahead” and “disruptive” technologies currently not available in the current the Live, Vir-tual, and Constructive Integrating Architecture (LVC-IA) program to facilitate the creation of the complex conditions found in any operational environment—conditions the Army can ill afford to replicate solely in live training environments.

The STE will enable commanders to develop agile, adaptive leaders and versatile units, capable of operating in any complex situation.

There are several strategic objectives with respect to the STE. They include the requirement to reduce operational com-plexity, improve soldier and unit readiness, provide more realis-tic training environments, reduce development and operations and sustainment costs, increase agility to provide customized training on demand, leverage Army Enterprise Networks and prevailing industry standards, and be Army Common Operating Environment compliant.

We are in the early stages of formulating the STE, and we are looking to industry and academia to help shape the foundation of the future architectural framework to make sure the STE keeps

TURNING TRAINING INTO CONFIDENCE – IN ALL DOMAINSWhen in combat, the training experience brought to the mission by each soldier is vital to success. And that’s where Saab makes a difference. Through innovative thinking, and by placing the individual at the very center when building our training solutions, we can offer some of the world’s most renowned and effective training systems.

Take our system for live training, for instance. It handles all types of mission and provides tools for swift analysis and evaluation of the soldier’s skills and tactical behavior.

By offering both 1-way and 2-way laser simulation – with applications for almost any vehicle or weapon system, integration with other systems, and simulators for virtual training – we can deliver a training experience that turns training into confidence, and trainees into soldiers.

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TURNING TRAINING INTO CONFIDENCE – IN ALL DOMAINSWhen in combat, the training experience brought to the mission by each soldier is vital to success. And that’s where Saab makes a difference. Through innovative thinking, and by placing the individual at the very center when building our training solutions, we can offer some of the world’s most renowned and effective training systems.

Take our system for live training, for instance. It handles all types of mission and provides tools for swift analysis and evaluation of the soldier’s skills and tactical behavior.

By offering both 1-way and 2-way laser simulation – with applications for almost any vehicle or weapon system, integration with other systems, and simulators for virtual training – we can deliver a training experience that turns training into confidence, and trainees into soldiers.

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pace with technology developments over time, as well as evolving industry standards.

Q: What is the framework of the STE innovation process?

A: The STE innovation process will include rapid prototyping events in a collaborative environment, a collaborative web-based design portal for interactive software design with industry/aca-demia and integration of emerging S&T capabilities throughout the development lifecycle. The architecture conceptual frame-work, as currently envisioned, calls for a core infrastructure and external services. The core infrastructure will provide core sup-port services, resources and the Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) backbone.

A major strength of a SOA implementation is a messaging backbone that can reliably transport data across an integrated en-terprise to get the right information to the right person at the right time for better decision making. The external services are envisioned to leverage existing enterprise solutions such as VM-ware virtualization infrastructure solutions and public key infra-structure solutions.

Q: What science and technology challenges does it face?

A: The hurdles include architecture challenges, architecture sup-port challenges, single synthetic environment challenges, one-world

terrain challenges, point-of-need challenges, artificial intelligence challenges, intelligent tutoring systems challenges and big data challenges.

Architecture. The architecture challenges include providing a cloud-enabled training as a service capability that makes train-ing resources available to end-users without tech support. The ar-chitecture must provide point-of-need delivery across operational networks that is flexible enough to support distributed processing in a data center or on local nodes. The architecture must also maintain concurrency with prevailing industry standards and a common operating environment to comply with requirements and limitations. We are looking to industry and academia to help us shape the foundation of the future architecture framework.

Architecture Support. From an architecture support chal-lenge perspective, we must provide seamless scalability from im-mersive collective company and below (gaming) though echelons above corps requirements. This requires convergence of virtual, constructive, gaming environments while providing concurrent support for divergent levels of modeling detail. The architecture must also support varying user interfaces, cyber models, human dimension modeling, advanced modeling of culture and infra-structure, intelligent tutoring systems and artificial intelligence capabilities. Here again, we need industry and academia to help us develop scalable cloud-enabled training components.

Single Synthetic Environment. We are also presented with single synthetic environment challenges that include converging the virtual, gaming and constructive training domains into one environment. The single environment must address the physical, cognitive and social dimensions of human performance, while en-suring that the simulation engine supports high entity counts. The single environment must ensure automatic horizontal and vertical scalability on demand, replicating the operational envi-ronment with variable threat environments (including political, military, economic, social, infrastructure, information, physical environment and time operational variables). The single environ-ment must also provide multi-resolution aggregate and entity/unit and platform fidelity, while addressing the “fair fight” issues of timing, live/synthetic interoperability, distribution and joint and coalition interoperability.

One-World Terrain. A common terrain platform has always been an issue when integrating disparate simulator and simula-tion systems into a collaborative synthetic environment. We must develop a one-world terrain service based on open, common ter-rain standards and formats. This includes standardizing the col-lection, processing, storage, distribution and utilization of geo-spatial data. The terrain must provide that geospatial data for the entire world at multiple resolutions, with automated procedures for terrain production and rapid terrain generation. The terrain must also provide first-person, interactive runtime rendering. The terrain must include terrain effects such as weather and geologi-cal occurrences, dynamically synchronizing live and synthetic ter-rain, and accurately reflecting real-world terrain physics.

Training at the Point of Need (PoN). The STE must provide the ability to stream high-fidelity training content which is op-timized for operational and tactical networks. It must render high entity counts on end-user devices, deliver and maintain STE capabilities from cloud locations, and synchronize game state between geographically distributed STE suites on a persistent 24/7 availability basis. The STE must operate on disconnected,


CAE has developed a comprehensive Aeromedical Evacuation Training System specifically designed to train both aircrews and medical personnel for critical aeromedical evacuation missions.

CAE’s Aeromedical Evacuation Training System is an off-the-shelf, cost-effective solution that features a high-fidelity fuselage trainer that can be developed to represent a range of air mobility platforms. The fuselage trainer is fully equipped for the aeromedical mission with real aircraft components, medical supplies, and human patient simulators from CAE Healthcare. The turnkey training solution also comes with a full curriculum and courseware designed for aeromedical training and a tablet instructor station to provide full control and customization of a variety of scenarios.

CAE will soon deliver to the U.S. Air Force at Dobbins Air Force Reserve Base an Aeromedical Evacuation Training System featuring a C-130 fuselage trainer equipped with CAE Healthcare iStan human patient simulators, which are also certified for in-flight use aboard military aircraft. This training solution is one example of CAE’s unique capability to leverage its extensive air mobility training experience with world-class healthcare simulators to develop and deliver integrated training solutions that enhance patient safety and mission readiness.

Please visit CAE’s booth at I/ITSEC (Booth #1734) in Orlando, Florida from November 30-December 3 to see a demonstration of our Aeromedical Evacuation Training System.

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intermittent and limited networks, employing bandwidth com-pression and data optimization algorithms, to ensure quality of service at the point of need. The STE must also conform to in-formation assurance and cybersecurity requirements without im-pacting the training experience.

Artificial Intelligence. The STE requires establishing a model-based Artificial Intelligence (AI) standard capable of collecting be-havior data to notify AI models. It must be an expert system that in-terprets results to prioritize resources. The end result is a capability that replicates free-thinking, adaptive, autonomous, synthetic op-posing forces, accurately modeling intelligent agents and complex human and unit behaviors. The AI models should also be capable of machine understanding of human intent through voice and non-verbal communication (facial and gesture recognition), natu-ral language recognition and interpretation, leveraging culturally aware virtual humans and replicating world cultural patterns.

Intelligent Tutoring. We will look to use commercial tech-nologies to aid in intelligent tutoring. The intelligent tutoring system will collect performance data for commanders to assess unit and soldier readiness. The IT will also collect physical, social and cognitive data while accurately aggregating individual perfor-mance data to higher-level units. The IT must understand natural language and non-verbal input, develop human dimension met-rics for physical, social and cognitive performance, and provide a contextual tutoring curriculum at the point of need.

Big Data. One of the keys to the success of STE will be the ability to easily develop and share content while leveraging large amounts of structured and unstructured data in training aids, devices, simu-lators and simulations scenario generation. The STE will support a variety of user types and roles, and we have to be able to aggregate data while maintaining accurate unit behaviors to ensure semantic interoperability sharing data between computers with unambigu-ous meaning. By leveraging nonproprietary data authoring tools and reliable, crowdsourced data, we intend to efficiently and re-liably transmit data over wide area networks. Of course, there is always the challenge associated with securing big data.

Q: In support of STE, how can PEO STRI contribute to developing a collaborative environment between industry, academia and government?

A: Working in a collaborative environment with industry and academia is not something new to the organizations dedicated to delivering the best training aids and devices to our soldiers in the field. I am confident that in our collective efforts to bring STE to full operating capability, we will continue our long and trusted collaborative relationships with both industry and academia.

The STE will include a physical collaborative environment where industry, academia and government can develop software together in one facility. The STE will also provide a web-based collaborative design portal for immersive, real-time software de-velopment. The STE may yield several new contracting vehicles to facilitate collaborative development between stakeholders dur-ing rapid prototyping events. The STE team will continue to host technology days and one-on-one sessions with industry.

Q: What role does the PEO STRI play in development of the Army’s Future Holistic Training Environment/Live Synthetic program?

A: PEO STRI takes our customers’ requirements and makes them a reality. In the case of the Army’s Future Holistic Training Envi-ronment/Live Synthetic (FHTE-LS) program, we will work closely with our partners at the Combined Arms Center for Training dur-ing the requirements development process to create a materiel solution for the FHTE-LS capability and ultimately deliver the technology to the soldiers. The STE is the interim step to achieve the Army’s future vision of FHTE-LS.

Q: What is the current status of your live-virtual-constructive (LVC) initiatives, including the LVC Integrating Architecture?

A: The LVC-IA is an ongoing formal acquisition program of record at post Milestone C of the JCIDS process. Version 2 of the LVC-IA is scheduled for release in fiscal year 2016, with version 3 planned for fiscal year 2018. Additionally, the Live-Synthetic Integrated Training Environment will take Army training to the next level by incorporating human factors with synthetic environments.

Q: What steps are you taking to improve PEO STRI’s contract administration and acquisition execution?

A: Based on the recommendation of the Army Contracting Study released in October 2013, the Honorable Heidi Shyu, as-sistant secretary of the army for acquisition, logistics and tech-nology, directed the official transition of PEO STRI’s Contract-ing Center to the Army Contracting Command (ACC), effective February 9, 2015.

In the memorandum directing the change, the Head of Con-tracting Activity for PEO STRI was transferred from me to General Dennis Via, commander of the Army Materiel Command, in which ACC is a subordinate organization.

The former PEO STRI Contracting Center is now officially operating as the Army Contracting Command-Orlando (ACC-Or-lando) with Joe Giunta serving as the executive director/Principal Assistant Responsible for Contracting (PARC). The new ACC-Or-lando will retain its current workforce, remain in its current loca-tion and continue to provide world-class procurement solutions for PEO STRI as its major supported customer.

Q: How has the organizational structure of PEO STRI changed this year, and what impact have the changes had?

A: In addition to the reorganization described earlier, it’s impor-tant to note that the charters of both PM CATT and PM ConSim were retired in late May of this year and the Project Manager Inte-grated Training Environment (PM ITE) was stood up. The impact has better aligned us with our requirement generators at CAC-T, enabling us to better achieve training system modernization and soldier readiness.

Q: What changes do you see ahead for the Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System, for which your command recently awarded $20 million in new contract orders?

A: The modernization of the MILES live training system will con-tinue to evolve as we reduce the number of MILES variants by re-placing legacy systems with new hardware. The integration of Live Training Engagement Composition (LTEC) will be implemented


to support appended, embedded and hybrid vehicle applications. LTEC provides govern-ment-owned software using a service-orient-ed architecture that can be embedded on a vehicle or integrated with external hardware and appended to the vehicle to provide a live training capability.

The Vehicle Tactical Engagement Simu-lation System (VTESS) will be awarded in fiscal year 2016 and will provide one design/architecture that supports both tactical and combat vehicle platform requirements. It will be the first use of wireless technology with the LTEC software architecture, which provides the Army a nonproprietary solution with component agreements for both hard-ware and software.

Q: What are you doing to develop and implement a strategy for Army cybersecurity training?

A: To meet sophisticated and expanding cyber threats, PEO STRI is working in coordina-tion with a consortium of cyber stakeholders to understand the requirements and identify the science and technology needs for cyber collective training, cy-ber threat representation and support for cyber test and evaluation.

We currently manage and perform red team activities, and we may soon assume an oversight role and institutionalize acquisition for blue team activities.

Additionally, we manage cyber ranges used for test and evalua-tion, and may potentially do the same for cyber training ranges in the near future.

Furthermore, we are modernizing current systems to support cyberspace operations and operational cyber support to corps and below. We are working with the Army Cyber Command and Army Cyber Center of Excellence to identify emerging requirements for current and future capabilities.

Finally, we are working with the Army Cyber Center of Excel-lence and Combined Arms Center to perform forward analysis of unit and collective cyber training tasks. We are coordinating with the Army Cyber Command to incorporate lessons learned from op-erational support to Army corps and below.

Q: What are some of the most exciting new technologies from the gaming/commercial markets that you see benefiting military training and simulation in the years ahead?

A: In addition to the STE and cyber test and training initiatives we have already discussed, we are excited about medical modeling and simulation.

Combat medical training conducted in realistic and stressful simulated battlefield environments has proven to save thousands of lives. The training performed under this program, the Medical Simulation Training Center, is the Army’s only program of record for combat trauma training.

To meet the future training needs in this critical area, PEO STRI will collaborate with the Defense Health Agency on the

Joint Program Office for Medical Modeling and Simulation (JPO MM&S). The JPO MM&S, a multi-service organization, will link medical simulation and science and technology to fielded medical training systems to optimize education, reduce cost and ultimate-ly improve Department of Defense health beneficiary clinical care.

Furthermore, we are developing a medically-validated anthro-pomorphic test device with scientifically validated musculoskel-etal injury assessment capability for ground vehicles under body blast testing. The program is called the Warrior Injury Assessment Manikin, or WIAMan.

Additionally, we’re diligently working on the Squad Overmatch Tactical Combat Casualty Care Study. The study is a Defense Health program-funded, PEO STRI-led effort to study simulation modalities to improve squad performance and resilience during tactical medical events. Primary elements include the creation of a casualty assessment and treatment capability in the Virtual Battle Space 3 environment and advancing the development of an electronic MILES casualty card capable of interacting with instru-mented medical devices. When fully developed, these technologies have the potential to significantly impact how medical skills and unit casualty response systems are observed and validated at the combat training centers and home station.

Lastly, we continue to support the Veterans Health Adminis-tration’s program for clinical simulation training, education and research called Simulation, Learning, Education and Research Network (SimLEARN). We have also partnered with the VHA on the Resuscitation Education Initiative, a program to standard-ize, document, track and monitor the provision of advanced cardiac life support, basic life support and advanced trauma life support training.

Many new and emerging opportunities lie ahead for PEO STRI to help ensure our Army remains the best-prepared force in the world. O

In its science and technology effort, PEO STRI’s hurdles include: architecture challenges, architecture support challenges, single synthetic environment challenges, one-world terrain challenges, point-of-need challenges, artificial intelligence challenges, intelligent tutoring systems challenges and big data challenges. [Photo courtesy of DoD]


2015

Maureen Bergondy-Wilhelm

Director of Research and Technology

Programs

Aida MattaDirector of

International Programs

Brian HicksDirector of Aviation

Programs

Michael MerrittDirector of Cross-Warfare Programs

Paul HonoldDirector of Surface and

Undersea Programs

ProgrAm direCtors

Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division

NAWCTSD

Capt. Wes NaylorCommanding Officer

Rob MatthewsDeputy Technical

DirectorDirector of Program

Management

John Meyers (SES)Technical Director

Director for the Naval Air Systems Command

Human Systems Department

Capt. Jiancarlo VillaChief of Staff

Military Deputy for Program Management

Capt. Erik EtzExecutive Officer

senior LeAdershiP

Lisa Daniel WentzCounsel

Timothy CichonDirector of Contracts

Bradley EhrhardtDirector of Logistics

Maynard ZettlerDirector of Research

and Engineering

John DalyDirector of Corporate

Operations

Carl LeeDirector of Test and

Evaluation

Suzanne Cormier-Livesay

Comptroller

ComPetenCy LeAdershiP

(Editor’s Note: Even as new modeling and simulation technolo-gies transform many aspects of military training, field exercises remain a mainstay of the military services’ efforts to develop new warfighters, reinforce and update the skills of those with experi-ence, and strengthen the ability to cooperate, communicate and stay cool under pressure. Following are snapshots of a few of the field exercises regularly held around the world by the U.S. military and its partners.)

battlefield Cyber-WarfareBy Captain Meredith Mathis

Five soldiers camouflaged under thick vegetation crawled on their bellies through the woods, dragging weapons and heavy back-packs with them until they were within sight of a small compound of buildings. They paused near the wood line and began pulling high-tech computers and surveillance equipment from their bags, which they quickly set up and covered with vegetation to avoid detection.

The soldiers are a mix of infantry, intelligence and offensive cyber specialties coming together for an integrative cyber valida-tion exercise on Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM), Wash., this fall. The exercise, which brings together soldiers from the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry (2-2 ID), 201st Expeditionary Military Intelligence Brigade (EMIB) and 780th Military Intelligence Brigade, is the first of its kind for 2-2 ID as they prepare to face a new cyber-enemy at the National Training Center (NTC), Fort Irwin, Calif., early next year.

Colonel William J. Hartman, commander of the 780th Military Intelligence Brigade, spearheaded the cyber-training initiative for the Army and provided integrated cyber-assets for the brigade as they trained in preparation for NTC. “We’re here working with 2-2 Stryker Brigade and the 201st EMIB here on a cyber-pilot that we’ve been working on for about a year now,” Hartman said. “The goal of the pilot is to analyze how we integrate a cyberspace operational capability at the corps level and below. For this particular iteration, we’re focusing on how we integrate a capability with a brigade com-bat team at the National Training Center.”

But the need for integrated cyber-capabilities extends far be-yond the training environment and into the modern battlefield. “If we look at what’s going on in the world, whether it’s what’s go-ing on in Southwest Asia with ISIL or what’s going on in EUCOM with the crisis in Ukraine, we’ve seen that our peer competitors or adversaries are very aggressively using cyberspace to support their operations,” Hartman said. “As an Army, we have to understand that environment.”

The integrated training at JBLM is a major launching point for ground units beginning to integrate cyber-capabilities into their training and operations. It is also a way for soldiers to under-stand the importance of the cyber-domain and how it can augment their missions.

For the training exercise, 1st Lieutenant Kenneth Medina commanded ground troops whose mission was to isolate and cap-ture a known enemy combatant somewhere in a multi-building

compound filled with people. Ordinarily, he would rely on pre-gath-ered intelligence information, which varies in reliability and accu-racy from mission to mission, to locate his target. However, during this mission, Medina had a new weapon providing him real-time in-telligence—offensive cyber-teams.

“The cyber-element was able to provide intelligence to myself on the ground that enhanced information that made the picture of the battlefield much clearer,” Medina said. “When you incorporate cyber into that, you gain a much higher degree of accuracy on the target and you can paint a much clearer picture of the objective area.”

While patrolling through the village, cyber and intelligence teams hidden in the wood line across from the compound and teams within the patrol provided up-to-the-minute information, enabling the men to quickly isolate the enemy target and remove him from the village.

“The cyber-element was able to monitor some of the digital traf-fic that was moving through the village and the compound. They were able to relay that information to me via radio, and I was able to take action on that intelligence that they gave me in the village in real time,” Medina said.

marine moUt trainingBy Corporal Christian Varney

In an exercise intended to increase fire team and squad-level proficiency, Alpha Company, Marine Barracks Washington, D.C., conducted a military operations in urban terrain (MOUT) at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., this fall. The training comprised four dif-ferent drills: immediate action drills in response to sniper fire, exte-rior movement, interior movement and room clearing, and opera-tion of a vehicle control point.

“We hope this helps the Marines be confident in their ability to conduct combat operations in a MOUT environment and build on the knowledge level of the individual Marine,” said Gunnery Ser-geant Justin Bradley, company gunnery sergeant, A Company.

The interior drills focused on clearing rooms and communicat-ing as a fire team. The Marines first breached the door by kicking

recent demonStrationS highlight the wide array of training and experiential opportunitieS

available during military field exerciSeS.

Marines from Alpha Company, Marine Barracks Washington, D.C., engage in a military operations in urban terrain exercise at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, Oct. 15, 2015. [Photo courtesy of U.S. Marine Corps/by Corporal Christian Varney]


it and used different techniques such as crossing over and button hooks to move through the en-trance. The fire team then worked together to clear the house in an efficient manner, always covering doorways and unsecured areas. The exterior drills focused on moving from building to building with the use of RIGS, which stands for reconnoiter, iso-late, gain foothold and secure.

The three elements of the squad—assault fire team, support fire team and security fire team—ad-vanced in subsequent order and secured the des-ignated structure. During the immediate action drills, the Marines patrolled through the MOUT Town while receiving simulated sniper fire.

The Marines under fire took covered positions to suppress the enemy, while another element of their squad maneuvered to the sniper’s posi-tion. “The sniper drills were a new addition to the MOUT training we usually do,” said Corporal Da-vid Worrell. “We were building on the fundamen-tals of being a rifleman by closing with the enemy in a new way.”

The last training scenario was the vehicle con-trol checkpoint. The Marines set up defensive po-sitions and barricades to prevent the vehicle from advancing, and the squad leader then shouted commands to the driver. Meanwhile, the Marines moved the occupants away from the vehicle so it could be searched for weapons or any other type of munitions, and then restrained the occupants and searched them.

bilateral search and rescueA bilateral exercise involving combat search

and rescue (CSAR) drills stretched over nearly two weeks of constant training this fall between U.S. and South Korean forces. Exercise Pacific Thunder 15-02 brought together units from the Air Force, Marines and South Korean air force to practice air combat and CSAR by focusing on enhancing in-teroperability and combat readiness of the military alliance across the Korean Peninsula.

“This exercise helps us bring together assets who would be in-volved and integrated into a real-world CSAR mission,” said Captain Jerrod Dillon, the 25th Fighter Squadron flight safety officer. “It also gives U.S. forces a chance to integrate and execute with our Repub-lic of Korea Air Force counterparts, further building the combined force proficiency and readiness, while simultaneously improving re-lations between our two militaries.”

Pacific Thunder is a total-process exercise, encompassing nearly all aspects of communication, coordination, command and control, mission planning and execution. “By taking a look at current tactics and procedures, practicing and refining those, and then exercising the system as realistically as possible, we are able to provide a world-class training opportunity to everyone involved,” Dillon said. “We are getting realistic training that’s in line with how we would fight.”

More than 10 different organizations and squadrons came to-gether to participate in the most recent exercise. “In size and scope, it’s rapidly approaching large-force-exercise levels, but I think it’s

unique in that it’s primarily planned and executed on a squadron or tactical level,” Dillon said. “What we do locally during these missions directly impacts the big Air Force mission. The knowledge and expe-rience gained while participating in this exercise is spread through-out the rest of the Air Force as people move on from Korea, carrying that knowledge with them.”

Working closely with all players on a biannual basis builds indi-vidual proficiency and increases the total-force capability of all par-ticipants, he added.

“It’s all about the CSAR,” Dillon said. “Aircraft can be replaced, but it’s much harder to replace a pilot who could have many years of training and experience. This exercise ensures we are ready to carry out the CSAR mission whenever called upon.” O

A recent cyber-training exercise on Joint Base Lewis McChord, Wash., integrated infantry ground units with cyber, signal and human intelligence collection capabilities, giving units on the modern battlefield a broader capacity to search out and isolate their enemies in real time. [Photo courtesy of U.S. Army/by Captain Meredith Mathis]

Members of the 33rd Rescue Squadron prepare for takeoff inside their HH-60G Pave Hawk Oct. 16, 2015, at Osan Air Base, South Korea. The 33rd RQS members are from Kadena Air Base, Japan, and are participating in exercise Pacific Thunder 15-02. [Photo courtesy of U.S. Air Force/by Staff Sgt. Benjamin Sutton]




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In the early 2000s, the U.S. military committed to adapting gaming technology to its training efforts. The commitment was hailed as forward-looking by analysts, who cited the Pentagon’s assessment both that the advances in gaming would appeal to a new generation of recruits, and that the realism afforded by game-based training technologies could achieve some of the mil-itary’s training goals while cutting training costs.

Along came Bohemia Interactive Simulations, then a Czech Republic-based company and now a multinational corporation owned by the private equity group Riverside Company. It adapted its existing commercial game, Operation Flashpoint, to a train-ing tool under the name Virtual Battlespace (VBS), providing a simulator for warfighters to train collectively in a high-fidelity, first-person virtual environment.

The first iteration of VBS came onto the market in 2004 when game-based training was still in its infancy, but military organi-zations around the world quickly realized its potential. VBS was soon adopted by the U.S. Marine Corps and the Australian De-fence Force and later by NATO militaries and others with similar training needs. The Marine Corps funded further improvements, the capability of the software quickly grew, and organizations de-veloped well over 100 use cases for the platform.

Today, VBS is used in more than 30 countries, and tens of thousands of NATO personnel are trained with VBS every year. In 2009, the U.S. Army committed $17 million to acquire 3,500 copies of the second version of Virtual Battle Space, VBS2.

“The underlying reason VBS has become such a standard is our total dedication to military customers and the military simu-lation industry,” said Peter Morrison, co-CEO of Bohemia Inter-active Simulations. “Our strong video game technology heritage means our technology advances quickly, cost-effectively and based on robust middleware, and we have the substantial capabil-ities of our excellent programmer and designer team. But beyond that, it is the privileged position and trust we have been afforded by our awesome military customers that has been behind the advance-ment of VBS.”

VBS3 has since been intro-duced, and it broadens and deep-ens the platform’s capabilities. Advances in VBS3 include support of greater number of training use cases and the ability to portray ter-rains much larger than previous

versions, allowing VBS3, unlike its competitors, to be used for flight simulations, among other things. Bohemia has more re-cently been working on the maritime domain to simulate realis-tic sea states, vessel physics and coastal effects.

incorporating new featureS

The ubiquity of the VBS platform has motivated users and developers alike to enhance the utility of the software by taking it in two directions: integrating VBS into broader existing training platforms and developing new features that can be incorporated into VBS.

Some companies have an easier time than others accomplishing these integration tasks, with the speed of extraction of data from VBS being a major point of con-tention. But there is no doubt that integration is doable and that it is encouraged and supported by Bo-hemia Interactive Simulations. Ef-forts are underway to make integra-tion easier.

“VBS3 is the training system of record for the U.S. Army and it has become the de facto system for just about every training unit,” said Courtney Dean, a senior scientist at Aptima. “It has largely been ad-opted by the Marine Corps as well.”

Bohemia Interactive’s origi-nal market success with VBS was attributable to three factors, ac-cording to Fredrik Ullner, a virtual programs engineer at Saab Defense and Security. “It was priced aggres-sively,” he said. “VBS1 was priced in

the tens of thousands of dollars, versus other simulations priced in the millions.”

The user interface was “quite good” and the overall package was “good enough,” in Ullner’s view. “It was a desktop system, so users didn’t have to buy any new hardware, and it fulfilled many of the requirements people had at that time.” The third factor was that it was built on existing intellectual property Bohemia Interactive owned in the form of the Operation Flashpoint game.

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Aptima is developing performance measurement tools that can be added to VBS. “The intent is to provide enhancement to training outcomes by incorporating these tools within VBS3,” said Dean.

Simthetiq produces vehicle models and terrain environments, which are often required to interact with VBS or be available in VBS format. “We have developed conversion tools internally that allow us to work from a common source to output 3-D models in VBS format as well as for other run-time engines,” said Gareth Jones, the company’s director of marketing and sales.

Ullner sees VBS as “sufficient for most requirements, but it doesn’t solve all scenarios.” “People use it as a game with train-ing elements,” he added. “It is still not fleshed out as a platform.”

Saab’s customers often find VBS meets basic training require-ments, but they often want additional features. “If they want something more specialized, VBS doesn’t quite cut it,” said Ull-ner. “The basic artificial intelligence is rudimentary at best. Cer-tain damage models exist in VBS, but they need to be improved.”

Saab has worked on integrating VBS into its customers’ larg-er training systems and has also developed add-on software such as graphical interfaces for fire control and targeting systems.

technology evolution

The core features of VBS1 that made it a success, in Morrison’s view, included its high-fidelity first-person virtual environment, an easy-to-use mission editor, its collective training capability and

the after-action review. “These core features have remained the same through VBS2 and VBS3,” said Morrison. “However, they have been refined in accordance with the evolving needs of VBS users and by inserting many new technologies from the commer-cial video game industry.”

Over the years, and through its three major iterations, VBS has supported many more training use cases. For example, VBS1 supported small terrains of up to 100 kilometers square, while VBS3 can handle terrains of orders of magnitude larger than that.

“By the end of 2015, the VBS image generator will provide a representation of the entire planet,” said Morrison. “This means that VBS3 and VBS IG are suitable for use in flight simulation, whereas VBS1 and VBS2 were not.”

Bohemia has been focusing on the maritime domain recently, with features that simulate sea states and corresponding ship physics. “We have developed a fully dynamic, 3-D sea-state model that simulates realistic surface conditions,” said Morrison. “Ships and other objects floating in the water are affected by interac-tions with the waves and ships leave wakes in the water and create bow wakes. Waves can also be affected by wind direction. Our sea states, as well as other aspects of the maritime simulation, such as the opacity and color of the water, can easily be adjusted in the scenario settings. The VBS sea state model also helps produce realistic coastal effects.”

Bohemia regards VBS as an open platform, and VBS3 ships with a free interface for creating plug-ins. “We also offer VBS Fu-sion,” a more full-featured application programming interface (API), said Morrison, “and we are looking to improve from the ground up the ability of VBS to interface with add-on software and to support add-on development. A market has formed around de-velopment of VBS3 content and plug-ins, and we encourage this.”

Bohemia Interactive primarily seeks development contracts to improve the underlying technology and the company encour-ages its customers to source VBS content and plug-in develop-ment work from the market. “Through modularization and im-proving our API access,” said Morrison, “we are opening up VBS even further and we’ll be announcing some big news regarding this in the near future.”

performance meaSureS

The performance measures Aptima has developed for VBS2 and VBS3 allow instructors to tap into the actions of individuals participating in training scenarios to evaluate whether their be-haviors are contributing to mission success, both from a tactical and a technical perspective.

“We want our measurements to reflect the greater competencies expected of warfighters—21st-century competencies,” said Dean. “Those include adaptability and decision-making confidence.”

Aptima’s performance-measurement tools are designed to aid instructors in evaluating trainees, but not to evaluate trainees independently. The tools are able to capture a wealth of data on trainee performance from VBS that human instructors could not possibly keep up with. The tools provide that data to instructors through dashboards and trend analyses that aid the instructor in completing a trainee evaluation.

The Aptima tools can be applied to ambush and other attack scenarios to measure, for example, what and how trainees are communicating in those situations. The scenarios are bundled

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with performance measures that are spe-cific to the competencies being trained. Instructors can make ratings based on be-haviors they are observing and on the data being provided by the tools.

“Those performance components can be displayed individually or combined with like measurements in real time and dis-played on a dashboard,” said Dean. “These performance measurements always have a human in the loop.”

Aptima’s development of performance measures is intended as a demonstration of what the company’s capabilities can per-form within VBS. “We intend to continue with the types of demonstrations we have been doing over the last couple of years,” said Dean. “What we are intending to do is to show the value of performance measurement tools as exem-plified in a leading simulation used throughout the Department of Defense.”

“We have an extensive library of Distributed Interactive Simu-lation (DIS) and High-Level Architecture (HLA) compliant COTS content that we put to work for our customers,” said Simthetiq’s Jones. “When a custom fit is required, we develop new content using open-source references. The result is highly accurate, run-time-ready models of vehicles or terrain environments that meet our customers’ needs.”

DIS and HLA are interoperability standards used in modeling and simulation.

Many of Simthetiq’s customers use VBS as their main run-time environment, or need to interact with VBS in some way. “To meet this demand, we use our own library of models and convert them to VBS format, or develop custom models that are integrat-ed into VBS,” said Jones. “We will even integrate third-party con-tent for customers if required. When we deliver a VBS-configured product to our customers, they are quickly able to integrate them

into their own systems so they can run them in their VBS-based scenarios and training exercises.”

add-on integration

The relative ease or difficulty of integration of these add-ons into VBS3 is a matter of some disagreement among developers. But the verdict is unanimous that the required integration can be successfully accomplished and that the process is supported by Bohemia Interactive.

“VBS3 is an excellent platform and produces easily consumed data,” said Dean. “Our performance engine tool relies on output from the simulation in order to complete the performance mea-sures. VBS is easily programmed, and we used that compatibility in planning our own technology. We developed our tools to make them easy to modify and apply so that the integration required is relatively easy to achieve and the integration issue is a low barrier to success.”

The process of integrating 3-D content into VBS isn’t “witch-craft,” said Jones, but it certainly takes experience and know-how to achieve the right results.

“When first we started out, it would take us a minimum of two weeks to inte-grate a model into VBS,” he related. “Now, depending on the complexity of the model, we are able to cut that time in half or more. In order to be able to do this, we have de-veloped a fruitful dialog with both Bohemia Interactive and our customers. By having an open discussion with our customers, we are able to identify their key VBS require-ments, provide our expert advice and help speed up what could otherwise be a com-plex and time-consuming process.”

“Bohemia has a baseline of content that comes with everybody’s license,” said Ull-ner, “but it is understood that military cus-tomers at times will want to develop their own body of capabilities that for reasons of confidentially they don’t want it out there.”

F-16 over VBS3 East Coast Gaming terrain. [Image courtesy of Bohemia Interactive Simulations]

U.S. Marine machinegunner model with M1A1 tank [Image courtesy of Bohemia Interactive Simulations]




Saab’s customers sometimes want VBS to be integrated with other systems, a task the company can accomplish with its own integration platform, WISE Connectivity. “We can integrate pretty much any sys-tem depending on what customers want,” said Ullner.

Saab has also built add-on compo-nents on behalf of customers for integra-tion within VBS. Among the plug-ins Saab has developed are simulations relating to artillery firing and troop movements.

plug-in iSSueS

Ullner has found that Bohemia’s Fu-sion tool has been adequate for many in-tegration plug-ins. For others, however, it has been found wanting. So Saab, for one, had to dive deeper into the VBS engine to make the integration happen.

VBS’s APIs make plug-ins “easier to build and manage,” said Ullner, but they have “restrictive interfaces” so that “we can’t do everything we want to do, such as perform advanced maneuvers with ve-hicles. We have moved away from the ex-isting APIs where we need access to raw data from the system.”

This situation presents yet another is-sue, in that the VBS engine can’t inject and extract data as fast as Saab would pre-fer. “The VBS APIs don’t refresh the data at the 60-times-per-second rate that we would like,” said Ullner.

“Configuration management is always a challenge, and backwards compatibility is often difficult to maintain as new fea-tures are rapidly added to VBS,” Morrison acknowledged. “We are committing sig-nificant independent research and devel-opment toward new technology to solve these types of issues as well as investing in a more sophisticated support and professional services capability.”

Bohemia is also working with various standards to ensure VBS leverages non-proprietary technology and standards wher-ever possible, especially for content such as terrain and 3-D mod-els. “We have significant experience and expertise in managing add-ons and plug-ins on behalf of our customers and we believe software integration will be an important part of many future simulation projects,” said Morrison.

“We also see the development of new, cheap and road-tested COTS hardware products such as the [virtual reality system] Ocu-lus Rift, motion platforms and new inputs to simulations such as motion-capture gloves, and the raft of newly forming cloud tech-nology companies being part of this add-on integration process.”

As for future VBS developments, Bohemia is rapidly modu-larizing VBS to allow easier access for systems integrators and to better leverage cloud deployment and processing, meeting an

even broader range of use cases. “This year, we announced VBS Blue, the whole-earth rendering engine behind VBS IG, which allows most modern simulators to leverage VBS3 visuals and con-tent,” said Morrison. “We also released VBS Gateway, our new HLA/DIS/CIGI [common image generator interface] gateway for VBS3” to promote interoperability, “and announced VBS Tactics, a new, easy-to-use multi-platform interface for controlling doc-trinal AI in VBS3.”

In parallel, Bohemia is improving VBS3 in accordance with various development contracts, such as the recent $12 million post-deployment software support award by the Marine Corps, and through significant independent research and development investment. O

Type 45 destroyer with Merlin VBS3 advanced sea states. [Image courtesy of Bohemia Interactive Simulations]

VBS3 night vision simulation. [Image courtesy of Bohemia Interactive Simulations]


commanD ProFile

The Combined Arms Center-Training (CAC-T) plays a role in Army training wherever and whenever it occurs. Headquartered at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., and commanded by Brigadier General Mark J. O’Neil, CAC-T has six subordinate organizations.

Through those subordinate organizations, CAC-T:

• Identifies requirements and manages more than 900,000 Army training aids, devices, simulators and simulations.

• Develops and sustains the Integrated Training Environment, which combines various live, virtual, constructive and gaming training enablers.

• Manages the Combat Training Center program.• Manages 6 million acres of training ranges.• Manages, develops and sustains training

management doctrine, processes, products and systems.

• Manages requirements for Army distributed and mobile learning.

• Integrates science and technology efforts for training and education.

• Executes the Mission Command Training Program, which develops commanders, leaders and units at the brigade level and above.

• Integrates training and education in the agile process and Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System.

• Provides Army and joint air-ground operations education, training, and command and control systems integration.

CAC-T supports the Army operating concept for unified land operations, which calls for winning in a complex world. To win in a complex world, Army training must be tough and realistic, and must utilize current and emerging technologies. A number of CAC-T’s efforts focus on how to harness technology to prepare

versatile units, develop innovative leaders and help the Army train as it fights.

The Army fights with its armor, aviation and other branches working together. Until recently, combined arms training using simulators was difficult. While cooperation between tank and heli-

copter crews is essential on the battlefield, tank and helicopter simulators were not designed to work with each other.

To overcome this problem, CAC-T and other Army organizations used hardware and software called the Live Virtual Constructive Integrating Ar-chitecture (LVC-IA) to link virtual simulators as well as live, constructive and gaming training enablers to form the Integrated Training Environment (ITE).

In the ITE, units can conduct multi-echelon training in the field, simulators and computer simu-lations. Data from the training exercise populates mission command information systems, and to

commanders, all of the training appears to be live. Since 2012, the Army has fielded the LVC-IA to 11 home stations and plans to add it to one more, Fort Wainwright, Alaska, in the coming year.

innovation facility

While the ITE represents an important milestone in training, it is an initial stage in the evolution of training. Currently, CAC-T and other Army organizations are working to develop the next evolution-ary stage, the Synthetic Training Environment (STE). It will link live training to one overarching simulation that replaces the multiple simulations of the virtual, constructive and gaming construct.

The STE will provide an unprecedented capability for collec-tive and multi-echelon training. In addition to existing user inter-faces such as personal computers and mobile devices, the STE will use new technologies such as virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR).

Combined Arms Center-Trainingarmy command identifieS requirementS and manageS more than 900,000 army training aidS, deviceS, SimulatorS and SimulationS.

by major michael Stinchfield and helen remily

Brigadier General Mark J. O’Neil


To help create the STE, the CAC-T Innovation Facility (CAC-TIF) at Fort Leavenworth’s National Simulation Center is testing user interfaces using off-the-shelf equipment to determine how technology such as VR can reduce costs and enhance training.

One example is a Stryker Virtual Collective Trainer. Instead of replicating everything in a real Stryker, the facility is us-ing VR in combination with touchscreens and minimal physi-cal infrastructure. The goal is to demonstrate a better, immer-sive environment for collective training at a lower cost than a full-size simulator.

Another experiment assesses VR for artillery call-for-fire train-ing and close air support. For example, controlling aircraft trainees can look over their shoulders at inbound aircraft in the 360 degree virtual environment.

The CAC-TIF team is experimenting with VR, programmable touchscreens, and commercial sticks and grips for aviation appli-cations in collective training. While it would cost tens of millions of dollars to field and network existing high-fidelity cockpit simu-lators for collective training, this equipment may provide enough fidelity for this purpose at a fraction of the cost.

Besides working on training enablers, the team is looking at how VR and other off-the-shelf technologies could benefit com-manders for real-world applications. For example, it could help leaders conduct virtual reconnaissance of potential operational areas by using on-line street view photographic data.

The CAC-TIF team also is looking at how commercial compa-nies’ VR games could make military training and education more compelling. Imagine learning about Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg from Union Major General George Meade’s vantage point on Cem-etery Ridge, and then quickly moving to Confederate Lieutenant General James Longstreet’s perspective on Seminary Ridge.

Besides experimenting with new technologies, the CAC-TIF of-fers units or the Centers of Excellence the opportunity to suggest developing simulations and simulators to fill training gaps. In do-ing so, the facility fulfills CAC-T’s missions to facilitate training for the operational and institutional Army.

The CAC-TIF’s future efforts will look to AR in the evolution of Army training. AR will allow the warfighter to see and interact with entities such as opposing forces, support aircraft and even adjacent units during live training. Using AR, these simulated enti-ties and battlefield effects will be superimposed on the visual field

of any trainee using something that appears as simple as today’s eye protection.

going mobile

CAC-T is bringing training and educational materials to soldiers where they need them, whether in the classroom, on the range or in the motor pool. Until this year, soldiers could only access the Army’s main training information website from a government com-puter and with a computer access card.

The Army chief of staff, General Ray Odierno, wanted to make training information more accessible. He directed the implementa-tion of username/password access to the Army’s single point of en-try for all things training—the Army Training Network—to ensure the widest access to authoritative training information.

In June, the Army took another step by making doctrinal pub-lications available on e-publications that soldiers can download to computer tablets and smart phones. In addition, some publications became available in enhanced electronic books (e2Books) format.

These e2Books are interactive digital publications embedded with audio, video, animation and simulation. This effort brings the written word to life, making the experience more engaging, helping soldiers better understand complex concepts, and improving their retention of the material.

To support the growing mobile mission, the Army this year chartered the TRADOC Capability Manager (TCM) Mobile at Fort Eustis, Va. The CAC-T organization develops wireless infrastruc-ture and mobile device requirements, and establishes governance, policy, funding streams, and the mobile apps development process.

Working closely with another Fort Eustis organization, TCM Mobile established a TRADOC Apps Gateway (TAG) to host unclas-sified, not-for-official-use-only apps and interactive digital publica-tions. The TAG provides one place to access proponent-validated and approved content for mobile devices.

Whether it is a mobile application or a virtual reality simula-tion, CAC-T is looking for ways to use technology to create chal-lenging training and develop agile Army leaders. O



cac-t Subordinate organizationS

• Army Joint Support Team, Hurlburt Field, Fla., and Nellis AFB, Nev.: Conducts Army and joint air-ground operations education, training and command and control systems integration.

• Army Training Support Center, Fort Eustis, Va.: Manages many Army training programs that enable the development, delivery and sustainment of training and education support capabilities worldwide.

• Combat Training Center Directorate, Fort Leavenworth, Kan.: Facilitates the validation, administration and integration of the Army’s Combat Training Center (CTC) program, its three maneuver CTCs and the Mission Command Training Program worldwide deployable CTC.

• Mission Command Training Program, Fort Leavenworth: Supports the collective training of Army units at worldwide locations to train leaders and provide commanders the opportunity to train on Mission Command in Unified Land Operations.

• National Simulation Center, Fort Leavenworth and Fort Lee, Va.: Ensures that the Army has the right live, virtual, constructive and gaming training tools to train leaders and soldiers to fight and win in a complex environment.

• Training Management Directorate, Fort Leavenworth: Manages, develops and sustains Army training management doctrine, processes, products and systems.


One of the premier events at I/ITSEC 2015 is the live-virtual-constructive (LVC) special event on the floor, Operation Blended Warrior (OBW). It focuses on developing a virtual environment for LVC simulations for training, but from the perspective of what it takes to put it together.

Announced as a multi-year annual LVC event at I/ITSEC, the initiative represents an attempt by the National Training and Simulation Association (NTSA) to showcase industry modeling and simulation capabilities, in conjunction with Department of Defense M&S capabilities. But more importantly, it will use this opportunity to collect data on challenges that arise during the exercise.

“We expend such an enormous amount of time and effort to accomplish these exercises, but we rarely take away a list of the les-sons learned and what it took to get to that point,” said Kent Grit-ton, director for Joint Training Integration and Evaluation, Team Orlando’s collaboration center.

“If we can couple that with a plan to mitigate the problems, then we can truly achieve a plug-and-play environment. We want to learn how we can improve the process of integrating things.”

“Everybody is working on LVC from the perspective of improv-ing the actual event,” Gritton said. “This is about improving what it takes to get to that event, and that’s the uniqueness of Operation Blended Warrior.”

The idea and exercise is nothing new. There have been con-nected simulation events at I/ITSEC since 1992, but the difference will be what follows the exercise. Even though simulation experts have been building these environments for many years, Gritton observed, there really haven’t been any improvements in putting them together.

“We are using our expertise to understand what it takes in both time and effort to make these things happen so we can get better at that,” Gritton said.

OBW begins on Monday, November 30, when the world is shocked as it watches the hypothetical country of Balboa endure a “black swan” type of natural disaster. Relief organizations and a co-alition force led by the United States swarm to the area in support. Throughout the week, this storyline prompts several scenarios that could stem from an event of this magnitude.

Attendees are encouraged to follow the story through numer-ous events, which highlight a wide variety of air, ground, mari-time, medical and cyber LVC capabilities constrained to I/ITSEC confines, as well as insights into the number, degree and priority of challenges encountered.

For months, leaders from NTSA, Team Orlando and dozens of M&S companies have been working together on OBW, ulti-mately to find solutions to improve the creation and execution of

LVC events. Each year’s event will highlight specific focus areas and collect data to form a baseline on the issues, challenges and ef-fort required to achieve a successful LVC environment correspond-ing to those areas.

This year’s event in Balboa will feature 15 vignettes that are themed on standards, after-action reviews and cyber, and although the overarching story will follow the Balboa natural disaster, throughout the week, the scenarios will magnify a piece of the on-going story and some type of engagement. There will be ancillary missions that have direct action, but the principal focus will be on the humanitarian mission.

“This approach allows us to study whether we’re getting any better or just spinning our wheels,” Gritton said. “The practice we’ll get through these events and the valuable data we can re-ceive at the end can benefit the entire LVC community and will help us understand what it takes to have a consistent, persistent environment. We’ll have real focus and through this exercise, we will document all the questions and issues that crop up as we go through integration.

“We don’t know what this information will result in, but at the end of the day, we’ll have identified our challenges, the characteris-tics of those challenges and what we need to work on in the future to remove those roadblocks. It’s highly beneficial for government and industry to understand [the] real criteria to make this work and build toward those things.”

More than 30 entities, including ones from industry and government, involved their subject-matter experts and simula-tions in building the environment, with the intent to help bet-ter understand what the problems are with trying to make the environment happen.

“We realize there are about nine different areas for which we would expect challenges for the integration/development of the Blended Warrior environment,” Gritton said. “Because there are so many of them and there are so many simulations we are trying to group together, we needed space within I/ITSEC that spanned all four days—seven and a half hours stretched over 5 blocks of time. We felt this was a good amount of time to be able to tease out all of the different areas that we need and to showcase all the simula-tions that are coming to play in Blended Warrior.”

“Everybody recognizes the value of what we’re doing, so there’s been no pushback,” Gritton said. “We’ll have a much better data range of where potential issues are as we look to integrate LVC into a persistent, consistent environment.” O

Improving LVC Integration



at i/itSec, operation blended warrior will collect data on challengeS to live-virtual-conStructive training.


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mt2 reSoUrce center

CalendarJanuary 19-20, 2016MilSim AsiaSingaporehttp://milsimasia.com

March 15-17, 2016Global Force Symposium & ExhibitionHuntsville, Ala.www.ausa.org

April 26-28, 2016MODSIM WorldVirginia Beach, Va.www.trainingsystems.org/events

May 2-5, 2016Xponential 2016New Orleans, La.www.auvsi.org

May 16-18, 2016Sea, Air, SpaceNational Harbor, Md.www.seaairspace.org

May 17-19, 2016ITEC 2016London, U.K.www.itec.co.uk

June 15-16, 2016 Training and Simulation Industry Symposium Orlando, Fla.www.trainingsystems.org/events

September 19-24, 2016Air & Space ConferenceNational Harbor, Md.www.ausa.org

October 3-5, 2016AUSA Annual Conference & ExhibitionWashington, D.C.www.ausa.org

Nov. 28, 2016-Dec. 2, 2016I/ITSECOrlando, Fla.www.iitsec.org

advertisers index

Adacel ...........................................................................................................1, 20www.adacel.com

AEgis Technologies Group ............................................................................30www.aegistg.com

Aero Simulation .............................................................................................39www.aerosimulation.com

AgustaWestland ..............................................................................................17www.agustawestland.com

Aptima ..............................................................................................................47www.aptima.com

AUSA Global Force .........................................................................................41www.ausameetings.org/globalforce

Bohemia Interactive Simulations ..............................................................15www.bisimulations.com

CAE ....................................................................................................................31www.cae.com

Caliente .............................................................................................................. 1www.calientellc.com

Christie ............................................................................................................14www.christiedigital.com/true120

Cubic Corporation .........................................................................................21www.cubic.com

David Clark Company ..................................................................................... 9www.davidclark.com

D-Box.................................................................................................................. 8www.d-box.com

DiSTI ................................................................................................................40www.disti.com/Easy

ITEC ..................................................................................................................28www.itec.co.uk

L-3 Link Simulation & Training ..................................................................13www.link.com

Lockheed Martin Mission System ................................................................. 7www.lockheedmartin.com/training

Meggitt Training Systems .............................................................................C3www.meggitttrainingsystems.com

MetaVR ............................................................................................ C2 Gatefoldwww.metavr.com

Raydon ............................................................................................................... 3www.raydon.com

Rockwell Collins.............................................................................................26www.rockwellcollins.com/simulation

Saab ..................................................................................................................29www.saab.com

SAIC ..................................................................................................................C4www.saic.com

TerraSim ..........................................................................................................37www.terrasim.com

Triangraphics .................................................................................................47www.triangraphics.com

Tru Simulation & Training ..........................................................................19www.trusimulation.com

I/ITSEC 2015 Booth 964

Learn more about Aptima in this edition of Military Training Technology:

LVC ShowcasePage 18

Battlespace PlatformPage 38

Boston ▪ DC ▪ Dayton ▪ Orlando | www.aptima.com

Human-Centered Engineering


Brad FeldmannPresident and CEOCubic Corporation

Q: To start off, please give readers an overview of Cubic Global Defense.

A: Cubic Global Defense (CGD) is a lead-ing provider of realistic combat training systems, C4ISR systems, mission training, intelligence, special operations and cyber solutions for the U.S. and allied forces in more than 35 nations. CGD designs, devel-ops, manufactures and fields a diverse range of systems, products and technologies that are critical for combat readiness and nation-al security. Our primary focus for creating these systems, products and technologies is to raise human performance and readiness, both individual and collective, by creating an effective, integrated learning and per-formance assessment experience. CGD also has an extensive services business, operat-ing many of the world’s best combat train-ing centers, as well as running the largest and most complex simulation exercises on the planet.

Q: What types of military training products and services do you offer?

A: CGD offers products and solutions in key areas in military training, including:

Training systems and services. Cubic brings leading-edge innovation to training fighter aircraft, land forces and maritime re-quirements. Cubic is the world’s leading pro-vider of air combat maneuvering instrumen-tation (ACMI). For ground, the company’s products include Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement Systems for dismounted train-ing, armored vehicles, exercise control and after-action review. As for maritime, Cubic develops game-based courseware in support of the Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship.

Virtual, immersive and game-based training solutions. Cubic combines innova-tion excellence and operational synergies to provide a full range of integrated virtual and immersive training solutions for military and security forces.

Range design solutions. Cubic offers specialized range design solutions for mili-tary, law enforcement, special operations and security organizations. Our live-fire so-lutions include large, turnkey and complex

ranges including bullet traps and ballistic fit-out, HVAC systems, electronic targets and simulation as well as range monitoring and safety systems.

Secure communications, networking and cyber technologies. Cubic’s communi-cation products provide ISR and command and control capabilities for land, air, mari-time and UAV operations. Providing secure wide-band communications and networking solutions for use on manned/unmanned and surface platforms allows us to precisely lo-cate and identify enemy targets in a network-centric environment.

Special operations and national security solutions. Cubic delivers highly specialized tactical training programs to a broad cus-tomer base focused in special operations and irregular warfare. Our national security training is critical to prevent, prepare and re-cover from the effects of terrorism, chemical and biological agents, natural disasters and other crises.

Combat training center services; exercise planning and execution; courseware design and development; flight simulator training; operations and maintenance support. Cubic has more than 30 years of experience in sup-porting frontline troops to meet real-world mission tasks.

Q: What unique benefits does your company provide its customers in comparison with other companies in your field?

A: Cubic’s proud heritage is anchored in a rich history of the design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of specialized systems and services. Our fu-ture as a systems and services technology company builds on our superior background

creating solutions to train and equip those who go into harm’s way to protect our free-dom. Cubic’s intellectual capital has become synonymous with reliability, affordability and innovation. As a global defense leader, we have a unique approach to providing situational understanding and training the U.S. military and its allies in their mission to operate successfully anywhere. We bring our innovative technologies to bear in C3I, na-tional intelligence, live-virtual-constructive and game-based training and security.

Q: What are some of the most significant pro-grams your company is currently working on with the military?

A: Cubic is the leading provider of realistic, mission-centered training systems and ser-vices, specializing in the integration of live, virtual and constructive training. On the aviation side of our business we specialize in ACMI for aircrew training, and we design and build some of the world’s best personnel location systems. For ground force training, we are the premier provider of combat train-ing center construction and training ser-vices, virtual training and live fire. For naval systems, we are the world leader in shipboard advanced game-based training systems.

Q: How do you see your training products and services evolving in the future to meet changing military needs?

A: Our customers need cost-effective solu-tions to elevate force readiness. In order to meet this demand, we will focus on delivering a blend of live, virtual and constructive train-ing with gaming simulations to save custom-ers’ money and ensure customers maintain readiness levels at a time when militaries are facing decreasing training budgets.

We are focused on developing capabili-ties in data links and C4ISR market, which we believe has the potential to improve our long-term profitability for this product line and for defense systems segment as a whole. With Cubic’s acquisition of DTECH Labs, we now have the specialization to offer advanced communications solutions. O

www.cubic.com

inDUStry interVieW military training technology


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© SAIC. All rights reserved.

SAIC delivers training on demand when and where it’s needed; whether deployed at a remote location or in a classroom. We are where you are.

See all the ways we are redefi ning ingenuity at saic.com

Ingenuity Demands Training.

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