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America’s Longest Established Simulation & Training Magazine

Defense Chairman Sen. John McCain Chairman Senate Armed Services Committee

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October 2015

Volume 20, Issue 6

COMMAND Profile:

Naval Education and Training Command Learning Centers

Image Generators O Vehicle Maintenance O Close Air Support Helicopter Gunnery

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military Training technology Features

October 2015 Volume 20, Issue 6

Cover / Q&A

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As military training programs shift increasingly to simulation technologies, one result has been a greater need for realism in content, which is critical to training effectiveness. Aided by new capabilities derived from the gaming world, developers of image generators are rapidly advancing available capabilities.

By Harrison Donnelly

A number of companies, including close air support specialists and simulation technology providers, have joined together to create integrated systems that combine simulation, eLearning and advanced classroom techniques to convey a solid foundation in needed skills to be followed by live training for final validation.

By Harrison Donnelly

Image Generators Bring New Realism

Training for Close Air Support

16 Senator John McCain

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Rotorcraft Gunnery

Like the platforms on which they ride, helicopter guns have a wide range of missions.

Training helicopter gunners is thus both vital to effective airborne operations and challenging in its variety and scope. Similarly, training systems for rotorcraft weaponry also vary across several dimensions.

By Henry Canaday

Departments 2 14 26 27

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Virtual Training Aids Vehicle Maintenance

One of the top priorities of maintaining military ground vehicles is to make sure there are enough properly trained mechanics, but providing easy access to hands-on training has been a challenge. New virtual technology developed by several companies, however, is making vehicle maintenance training more accessible and effective.

By Karen E. Thuermer

Chairman Senate Armed Services Committee

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command profile: Naval Education and Training Command Learning Centers

The Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) is the largest shore command in the Navy, providing ready, relevant learning and education support that literally touches every sailor in the Navy. The NETC training construct is based on 12 learning centers around the country, with mission-specific schools that support essential tasks identified as requirements by the fleet.

Industry Interview

Editor’s Perspective data packets Team orlando Resource center

Lenny Genna President L-3 Link

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“As I have made clear since being confirmed as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, it is my top priority to repeal sequestration, which continues to inflict lasting damage on the capabilities, readiness, morale and modernization of our military.

Each of our military service chiefs and countless national security experts have testified before the committee that if we continue on the dangerous path of sequestration, American lives will be put at risk.”

— Sen. John McCain

Military Training Technology Volume 20, Issue 6 • October 2015

Recognized Leader Covering All Aspects of Military Training Readiness Editorial Editor

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EDITOR’S PERSPECTIVE Recent changes in the Army’s basic combat training (BCT) program cover a wide range of topics from rifle marksmanship to landmine defense. But one of the most interesting changes is the addition of evaluations of trainees by their fellow soldiers, who may be better able to judge their peers on a critical but difficult-to-train area—character.

With peer evaluation, soldiers in BCT units will evaluate each other on how they are adhering to standards and performing on tasks, and even if they shine when the drill sergeant is away in the same way that they shine when he is nearby.

“Nobody is going to know you more than the guy next to you,” Harrison Donnelly Editor Command Sergeant Major Dennis Woods, with Army Training and Doctrine Command’s Center for Initial Military Training, was quoted as saying. “If I am the instructor, all of your buddies you are with know the things you are doing that the instructor never caught. Maybe you are only spotlighting when the instructor is around. But when he’s not around, everybody has to pull your weight. This peer evaluation lets soldiers see themselves through the eyes of their peers.”

A peer evaluation pilot program has already been undertaken at Fort Jackson, S.C., and it will be implemented this fall at all four Army basic training locations: Fort Jackson; Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.; Fort Sill, Okla.; and Fort Benning, Ga. The peer evaluations will primarily serve as an indicator of character for soldiers, Woods explained, thus allowing the Army to better evaluate some of the things that are important about being a soldier but are harder to measure through testing and performance.

“Some people will get all the warrior tasks, battle drills and skills, because they are physically inclined,” Woods said. “But their character may have an issue. That peer evaluation will help us uncover that character. As a result, a soldier may spend more time in basic training before he ships to that first unit of assignment.”

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The U.K., U.S. and other militaries make extensive use of advanced simulation technology to train close air support controllers, who have one of the most demanding jobs in the modern era of joint operations. [Photo courtesy of Close Air Solutions. Crown copyright]

Simulated and live-fire training systems improve weapons performance by helicopter crews.

By Henry Canaday, MT2 Correspondent

Like the platforms on which they ride, helicopter guns have a wide range of missions, playing decisive roles in situations from insertions to extractions and close-in support of deployed units. Training helicopter gunners is thus both vital to effective airborne operations and challenging in its variety and scope.

Similarly, training systems for rotorcraft weaponry also vary across several dimensions. Some systems train only gunners, while others train whole rotorcraft crews.

Some specialize in specific models and weapons, while others stretch across many platforms. Some devices replicate the full sight, sound and feel of chopper operations, while others focus on the critical visual images.

AVT Simulation, for example, offers rotary wing collective training and training for front-seat co-pilot/gunners on the AH-64 Apache. “We make everything from lower- to high-end fidelity systems,” said Kevin Vizzarri, vice president of business development.

AVT’s Apache Gaming Peripheral replicates the front seat of the AH-64 using Virtual Battle Space gaming. It is USB-driven, with real grips, switches and triggers. The Recurring Skills Trainer-Gunner, meanwhile, trains students on such front-seat www.MT2-kmi.com

procedures as using fire-control radar, threat file-sharing, remote Hellfire engagement and laser designation. It lets them fly with an unmanned aerial vehicle wingman in manned/unmanned teaming mode with a remote control station.

At the top of AVT’s suite is the Combined Aircrew Mission Task Trainer (CAMTT), which trains multiple operators of AH-64s and UH-60 Blackhawks on a virtual battlefield. AVT is now integrating CH-47 Chinooks into CAMTT. This trainer is especially good at training mission leaders and mission rehearsal, according to company executives.

“All our training solutions are part of the same CAMTT family—scalable, interoperable and tailorable,” Vizzarri stressed. “And they train in collective operations.”

Although CAMTT handles other helicopters, training Apache gunners is AVT’s specialty. As a development contractor for the Army’s Aviation Combined Arms Tactical Trainer, AVT knows most current aircraft in the inventory.

Some organizations want full-motion simulators, with hydraulics and panoramic views, but these can be extremely expensive.

AVT makes more affordable simulators that use realistic interfaces and a screen that focuses on the view in front of the gunner, all in a small footprint.

AVT is now getting more into the gaming approach to training, looking at laser and other technologies and developing the ability to change terrain without shutting down training devices, all while staying affordable and within small footprints. The company is rolling out an Apache gunnery trainer that combines realistic gaming with training in specific skills.

Live Fire There are also non-simulation approaches to training, however, such as the one pursued by Inter-Coastal Electronics (ICE), which makes training, telemetry and test instrumentation that collects, processes, transmits and records data from live-fire training. “Our focus is live training, with modest exposure to virtual programs,” explained Gregory Kraak, vice president of business development.

ICE makes the Aviation Tactical Engagement Simulation System (TESS), which enables aircrews to practice live-weapon engagements and combined-arms training without firing a round. Aviation TESS is used by all three Army Combat Training Centers and many home stations.

Aviation TESS provides integrated, instrumented training for force-on-force and MT2 20.6 | 3

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force-on-target collective training events.

It integrates trainees into a network infrastructure via telemetry antennas that transmit live feeds across many players and sites, and automatically adjudicates results of live, virtual and constructive fire. Combining TESS with onboard aircraft gun video and ICE’s advanced software yields real-time monitoring of training events and engagements.

ICE has extensive experience instrumenting different aircraft, including AH-64, UH-60, CH-47, OH-58D Kiowa and UH-72 Lakota. It is a provider of air-to-ground instrumentation and live-training for aviation crews. The company’s Modular Smart Onboard Data Interface Module (MSMODIM) interfaces with air and ground vehicles and is the primary component of TESS. MSMODIM interfaces electronically with aircraft weapons to simulate weapons engagements, monitor performance and locate positions. It tracks, records and transmits data for real-time observation and after-action reviews. It computes solutions for Hellfire missiles, semi-active lasers, 30 mm guns and rockets. Targets are selected from an onboard database, and each weapon’s impact footprint and effects are judged probabilistically. ICE is now developing an advanced SMODIM compatible with MSMODIM but significantly enhanced.

The Army is now adding offensive capabilities to opposing-force UH-72s at its Combat Training Centers. UH-60 and CH-47 crews are asking for offensive capabilities, specifically door gunners, so ICE is selffunding prototype development for this capability. It is focused on instrumenting M240H machine guns, which are standardissue for UH and CH door gunners.

ICE intends to expand its solution to other platforms, weapons and capabilities.

“Our solution will include a gun-mounted camera that measures weapon effectiveness and records effects of rounds on groundbased targets,” Kraak noted. “A mechanical design has been developed and initial testing on the M240H has been performed.”

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4 | MT2 20.6

CAE offers comprehensive door-gunner training with visual, aural and tactile cues, explained Global Business Development Director Phil Perey. Its reconfigurable gunnery trainer provides both window- and ramp-gunner positions with a single display system. For integrated crew training, CAE

also offers gunner training as part of its rearcrew trainer.

“Both solutions provide direct, transferable training for gunner/scanner crew positions,” Perey said. “Integrated gunnery trainers provide real-time, designated normal aircraft scanning and gunnery procedures.”

CAE services include analysis of training needs and media analysis, designing visual databases and integration of gunnery trainers with other training devices.

The company’s trainers can simulate the operational environment of any helicopter and be configured for any gunning position or cabin environment, Perey said, adding that the company recently delivered a CH47 gunnery trainer to the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF).

CAE’s gunnery trainers are designed with pilots, co-pilots, gunners and other rear crew in mind. They can be networked with other state-of-the-art simulation devices to enhance mission training. For example, the CH-47 gunnery trainer is routinely networked to a full-mission simulator, a fixed-base training device and a deployable tactical flight trainer.

CAE gunnery trainers work with nightvision displays, night-vision goggles and multi-ship operations. They include a range of simulated weapons to help train for weapon malfunctions and simulate drag effects of weapons protruding into slip streams.

CAE is considering incorporating vibration and motion cues and wind simulation in its gunnery trainers.

Acme Worldwide Enterprises was part of CAE’s CH-147 Integrated Gunnery Trainer (IGT) team for the RCAF. Acme provided the reconfigurable fuselage and enclosure, lighting, replica weapons and mounts. The IGT includes the company’s high-fidelity replica machine guns and all-electric recoil system, which feel and function like actual guns with full recoil.

Rear Cabin Training Havelsan’s Rear Cabin Trainer (RCT) combines modular hardware, virtual reality and simulation software in a cost-effective training system, according to Program Manager Hakan Karapinar. The RCT has a mockup of the rear cabin of the AgustaWestland AW139, operated by about 18 militaries, and NHIndustries NH90, flown by many European forces. It can be reconfigured for different training tasks such as apertures, weapon www.MT2-kmi.com

mounts and communications, and can be moved as needed.

For training rear crew, the RCT has two visual systems: a head-mounted display for up to two rear-crew stations, and a 180-by-40 degree out-the-window field-of-view dome for training in crew-served weapons.

The RCT offers a range of door gunnery options, and Havelsan can simulate different weapons with a high degree of fidelity. Training can be done in virtual-reality-only mode or with the aid of 80-degree dome projection. Both systems use customized software for tracers, ground effects and gun models.

For crew-served weapons training, the RCT has a dummy weapon with compressor-powered recoil or simulated recoil. The shoot-on-screen projection dome offers better peripheral vision and unobstructed operation of the simulated crew-served weapon.

RCT’s realistic weather effects include wind, rain, dust, brownout and fog. It simulates night-vision and thermal images and many terrain types.

Havelsan also offers a long-range missile system simulator, LORAMISS, for training

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Kratos Training Systems products train gunners by simulating multiple weapons and their ammunition. [Image courtesy of Kratos Training Systems]

pilots in firing air-to-surface missiles from helicopters to surface targets like tanks and buildings. LORAMISS simulates the complete missile system with a partial helicopter simulator.

The partial helicopter simulator has simulated aviation instruments such as pedals and multi-functional display (MFD) screens

that display pitch, roll, bearing, speed, altitude and remaining fuel. LORAMISS’s missile controls simulate selecting missiles, searching targets, locking to targets, breaking locks and firing. It uses an out-the-window view with the help of image generators that also generate an infrared seeker view of the missile on an MFD screen.

MT2 20.6 | 5

weapon simulations, noted Sheila Jaszlics, commercial markets, and is enhancing realthe company’s president. ism with odor simulation, climate-changing environments and vibrations.

Pathfinder Systems Inc. (PSI) offers Simulation Fidelity high-fidelity trainers for initial and continued-proficiency training for rotorcraft crew Thales pioneered military-helicopter chiefs, gunners and loadmasters. PSI traintraining, and its product portfolio ranges ers support multiple aircraft, so crew can from task trainers to full-mission simulatrain for different platforms in one simulators, said Joël Flinois, helicopter simulator. Engine sounds, aerodynamic noise and tion line manager, adding, “More than 110 weapon fire are used for realistic training. helicopter simulators have been delivered to The Army contracted with PSI to build customers in 25 countries.” a Non-rated Crew Member Trainer (NCMT) Thales offers three main helicopter for UH-60 and CH-47 crews. The NCMT has trainers. Its Full-Mission Simulator (FMS) two trainers in a 53-foot expandable tractortrains gunners in technical and tactical skills trailer and does gunnery training, among and mission preparation. FMS provides the Stand-Alone or Networked other tasks. PSI has delivered crew trainers highest level of fidelity in weapon and senand simulation to the Army, sor simulation. Sagittarius Evolution offers Kratos Training Systems Navy, Coast Guard, Marines simulation-based training for door gunners offers a range of gunnerand several European nain gunnery skills and communication. Tractraining tools to achieve the tions. ers, ballistics and down wash are included in right fidelity for each trainPSI’s Coast Guard Airsimulations. Finally, the Helicopter Mission ing phase, said Senior Vice crew Weapons Trainer is Trainer is a multi-platform tactical training President Jose Diaz. It makes a motion-based simulator system that trains gunners and other crew systems for many rotorcraft, training for various weapvery cost-effectively in tactical skills. reconfigurable for helmetons on either MH-60Cs or Thales also helps operate French, Germounted displays, as well as MH-60Js. Its Marine Comman and Australian schools for Tiger attack projection-based and motionmon Aircrew Trainer-Prohelicopters, a U.K. school for the Westland based training. Solutions can Jose Diaz totype 2 is used by Marines Lynx and a German school for the NH90. be stand-alone gunner trainto train CH-53E, MV-22B Osprey and UH-1Y Thales trainers support all type of combat ing or networked full-crew systems. gunners and other crew. helicopters, including Chinooks. SagitKratos systems train gunners by simuPSI is now making it easier to convert tarius equipment supports CH-53s, CH-47s lating multiple weapons and their ammutrainers among aircraft and improving and other rotorcraft. Tiger FMSs replicate nition, and train in communication and crew coordination through all flight phases.

Kratos makes fully integrated systems for the H-60, H-53 Stallion, H-47 and UH-1 Iroquois that train in gunnery using either projections or helmet-mounted displays.

In 2014, Kratos was on a team chosen to deliver four MH-60R Seahawk Naval Aircrew Training Systems and four MH-60S Aircrew Virtual Environment Trainer devices for the Naval Air Systems Command. The devices train MH-60 crew in several tasks, including gunnery.

Kratos is now adding augmented reality to gunnery training, Diaz explained, so that “artificial information about the environment and objects in it can be overlaid onto the real world.” It has integrated augmented reality into helmet mounted displays, allowing trainees to immerse themselves in higher-fidelity environments and perform tasks not feasible or realistic in virtual reality.

Kratos will expand helmet-mounted displays from single to multiple positions and operate them in networked distributed mission operations environments. It is looking Live-fire training is the focus at Inter-Coastal Electronics, which makes training, telemetry and test instrumentation that collects, processes, transmits and records data from live-fire training. [Photo courtesy of Inter-Coastal Electronics] at virtual databases and image generators in Havelsan is currently acquiring a company called Quantum3D, which will initially offer the parent firm’s products, including LORAMISS, RCT and Armament System Simulation, according to Scott MacDougall, a company spokesman. Over time, the combined firms will offer many new training products.

LORAMISS includes an instructor/operator station (IOS) console, MacDougall noted. “Using IOS, the trainer can design the scenario and let the pilot play it. Targets and own-ship can be placed anywhere on the simulation area.”

6 | MT2 20.6

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The Thales Helicopter Mission Trainer is a multi-platform tactical training system that trains gunners and other crew in tactical skills. [Photo courtesy of Thales]

the feel of their aircraft. “Kinesthetic cues many different rockets and missiles, includenable helicopter gunners to know how ing Hellfires and laser-guided missiles, and aircraft are behaving and understand their are used in a virtual environment managed state,” explained Senior Marketing Director

by Thales Computer’s Generated Forces Sébastien Lozé. system.

Relying on physical senSagittarius trainers acsations in training is essencount for the effects of movtial, Lozé noted, especially ing platforms on ballistics in patrolling at low altitudes and can be combined with and complex tactical situaother simulators to jointly tions. Trainees develop retrain dismounted soldiers flexes to communicate when and helicopter gunners, Flivisual and audio communinois said. FMS trainers simucations are degraded by loud late all motion, vibration and noise, explosions, night or visual cues with a large field rotor wash. Gunners rely on of view (240 by 90 degrees).

Sébastien Lozé balance and their feel for heThales can generate visual sloze@d-box.com licopter movements. databases for any country D-BOX motion system has been inteneeded and simulate tactical environments grated by Thales, BlueDrop and other partwith hundreds of actors. ners for helicopter gunner training. “There Flinois predicted that the future will is no limit to the type of helicopter we can see more networked simulators to train support,” Lozé stressed. “If your software gunners collectively in realistic environcan generate movements and vibrations ments, as well as better integration of huaccurately, we can bring them to the real man factors in simulators. Augmented realworld and make gunners feel them. Trainees ity for live training will also become more anticipate movements of aircraft and keep important. their aim efficiently.”

D-BOX systems are easily deployed and Kinesthetic Cues have small footprints. Thales used D-BOX equipment to bring a new level of realism D-BOX makes a motion system for to airborne gunner training. “The benefit of simulators that gives helicopter gunners www.MT2-kmi.com

D-BOX is that all you need is a very simple mount with a gun on it and you’ll be up and running. That can’t be done with a classic hexapod platform because it lacks the deployability that D-BOX offers,” observed Marco Zender, Thales product manager.

“We bring finesse to motion systems that is very hard to obtain otherwise,” Lozé said.

D-BOX’s integration with Presagis’s HeliSIM delivers realism not found in other COTS motion simulators, said Stephane Roy, president of Roy Aircraft & Avionic Simulation.

“D-BOX vibrations bring the mechanical feel of the helicopter. When we flew the Blackhawk and the Chinook in this simulator, we could even tell which type of aircraft we were piloting based on the subtlety of motion and vibration cueing. D-BOX is the only small simulation motion solution that can provide the accuracy and frequency to mimic the movement of a helicopter up to 100 Hz of vibration,” Roy said. O

For more information, contact MT2 Editor Hank Donnelly at hankd@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives for related stories at www.mt2-kmi.com.

MT2 20.6 | 7

Image Generators

Bring New Realism

Aided by capabilities from the gaming world, developers are rapidly advancing available capabilities.

By Harrison Donnelly, MT2 Editor

agery with our own portable UAV for building high-resolution, geoAs military training programs shift increasingly to simulation specific terrain databases, and improve our IG to render the sub-inch technologies in order to keep down costs, one result has been a resolution terrain.” greater need for realism in content, which is critical to training efGaming technology, meanwhile, has greatly influenced the defectiveness. Aided by new capabilities derived from the gaming world, sign and lowered the cost of graphics processor unit (GPU) archidevelopers of image generators (IG), which support the immersion tectures. “Diamond Visionics works closely with GPU industry leadof trainees in realistic environments, are rapidly advancing available ers that have enabled fundamentally different approaches for scene capabilities. generation using parallelism to perform tasks that were previously Image generators create the “picture” of the environment surimpractical. Because of this shift in the underlying design of the rounding the trainee, with the simulator’s computer sending GPU, traditional scene-graph designs that operate on pre-compiled commands to the image generator based on what is occurring in databases are unable to fully leverage modern graphics hardware,” the simulation, such as air or ground maneuvers and trainee acOvery said. tions. The most noticeable use of image generators is for “out Moreover, gaming technology has raised expectathe window” (OTW) scenes in aircraft and ground tions for simulation. “While the 3-D realism in games vehicle simulators. don’t always scale to larger simulations with IGs, the “In the past, simulation and training budgets alcompetition from the game market makes IG providlowed for ‘big iron’ solutions, with price being seconders work harder, thus improving the IG market,” said ary. Today, our industry is routinely asked to do more Smith. with less,” observed Brian K. Overy, vice president of “Also, the gaming technology infrastructure has marketing and sales for Diamond Visionics. “Higher positively affected the advancements of IGs,” he conrequirements, increasingly limited budgets and fewer tinued. “Years ago, an IG was an expensive component acquisitions have created much fiercer competition of very expensive simulators. Gaming technology, for large and small business alike. Additionally, there with its huge consumer market, has forced continuis also a growing requirement to reduce simulator faBrian K. Overy ous improvement and lower prices for 3-D graphics cility operational costs associated with maintenance, bovery@diamondvisionics.com cards and tracking devices, and even head-mounted power consumption and cooling.” displays with the advent of the Oculus Rift. The In response, he continued, “Diamond Visioncompetition of such components has had a great efics’ advanced technology consolidates IG hardware fect on driving the technology innovation that we in resources considerably, allowing for up to eight indethe simulation market have benefited from greatly. pendent channels to be driven from a single 4U PC The 3-D art pipeline of the gaming world has also had system. This greatly reduces the installation footprint a very positive affect on simulation, giving us access to and power requirements compared to traditional sysa large community of artists to build real-time models tems. The elimination of database generation saves for simulation.” our customers millions and further reduces the overAnother key trend in this field has been efforts to all cost of ownership of the system.” achieve synthetic environment re-use and commonalThe need for greater realism has resulted in opity, which along with hardware obsolescence has been portunities for MetaVR in ways the company could not W. Garth Smith a key cost driver associated with long-term life cycle have predicted 10 years ago, noted W. Garth Smith, wgsmith@metavr.com support of simulator visual systems, according to Nick president and co-founder. In addition, “The developGibbs, senior director, simulation and training solutions products, ment of commercial portable UAVs and the improvements in digital Rockwell Collins. camera technology have allowed us to collect sub-inch resolution im8 | MT2 20.6

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directly from standard GIS-source Current military efforts are fodata formats. By breaking down the cused on strategies to create larger wall between database generation common synthetic environment daand visualization, much higher pertasets that will support all synthetic formance and fidelity are achieved environment needs for all levels of in far less time than is typically training, Gibbs noted, pointing to required. the Navy’s Naval Portable Source “The ability to drive higher Initiative as well as the Army’s goal resolution displays at higher frameof establishing One World Terrain rates and with greater scene comwithin a decade. plexity enables tactical training that “The challenge for industry is would otherwise not be possible in that all of these ‘common’ initiaa simulator,” he added. “The fact tives are independent of each other, that GenesisRTX products run diwhich requires any industry part- As depicted by MetaVR’s VRSG image generator, a CH-53 helicopter flies over virtual Juneau, Alaska. [Image courtesy of MetaVR] rectly from the source allows our ner interested in supporting mulcustomers to rapidly update and tiple government initiatives to work deploy simulation scenarios in minin multiple data sets—exactly the utes that traditionally take days or problem the initiatives are intended weeks.” to avoid,” he said.

Another company in this area is In response to the obsolescence Aechelon Technology, an indepenmanagement challenge, Gibbs condent vendor that designs, produces tinued, there is movement toward and delivers IGs, multi-spectral cloud-based rendering from comgeo-specific databases, large data mon server centers. “These server centers and integration services centers would then deliver image for training, UAS ground stations rendering to full-flight simulators and mission rehearsal applications. as well as point-of-need devices for It offers the Aechelon pC-Nova for traditional desktop type training image and data generators and from the same common environ- Diamond Visionics provides a full range of technologies for image generation, including this synthetic aperture radar image. [Image courtesy of Diamond Visionics] Aechelon Nexus for data centers to ments. Allowing sharing of rencustomers in the defense, homeland security and fordering resources and single-location maintenance eign military markets. and obsolescence management would significantly “Our systems are unique because they were dereduce the overall cost of ownership of image gensigned from inception to manage large quantities of eration for the military services as well as individual multi-spectral data in a sensor-independent fashion, clients/programs.” therefore supporting not just NVG, EO and IR, but also radar and tactical environments with one-to-one Out the Window correlation,” explained Javier Castellar, company cofounder and vice president of business development.

Diamond Visionics provides a full range of tech“When a new sensor payload is deployed on a new or nologies for image generation, from a software develexisting platform, our systems are ready for their new opment kit for end-user IG development to turnkey Javier Castellar physics-based sensor response. In addition, our focus systems complete with hardware and installation javier@aechelon.com is on providing a complete image and data generasupport. The GenesisRTX family of products includes tion solution within the system, serving not just OTW and sensor GenesisIG for out-the-window (OTW) scene generation, GenesisSN simulation, but also tactical systems and radar-derived data flows.” for night-vision goggle (NVG) scenarios (both simulation and stimLooking at the benefits and return on investment of such sysulation), and EO-IR and GenesisRDR for a complete radar solution. tems, however, Castellar also made clear that visual systems alone The approach taken by the company is superior to traditional are just “eye candy” if not properly integrated with other subsysvisual systems, which require off-line processing of source data tems, or if the system design as a whole is not balanced. to generate pre-computed levels of detail, Overy explained. The A key question to ask in analyzing the ROI of display systems, time required for this process can often be measured in weeks or he suggested, is this: “Do your pixels have the proper balance of months, depending on the extent and complexity of the source data, database content behind the image generator? with the resulting database consuming significantly more storage “Balancing requirements implies that if you invest in a 4K prospace than the source data used to create it. Additionally, individual jector system, you need to be sure that the 3-D content and rendatabases are required for OTW, NVG and radar content, driving dering on the image generator use all those extra pixels. In other costs up. words, pixels for pixels or polygons for polygons makes no sense The GenesisRTX family of products eliminates the need for traunless the combined requirements of display system, image generaditional off-line database generation, Overy noted. “By leveraging tor, database and tactical environment are balanced and taken into the parallelism of modern CPUs and the GPUs, they are able to dyaccount,” Castellar said. namically construct OTW and correlated sensor scenes at run-time www.MT2-kmi.com

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Controller Training The biggest percentage of MetaVR’s customer base uses its IG for UAV pilot/sensor training and joint terminal attack controller (JTAC) training.

MetaVR’s real-time 3-D visualization software, Virtual Reality Scene Generator (VRSG), is a PC-based render engine that enables users to visualize geographically expansive virtual worlds with the latest commercial 3-D graphics accelerators. VRSG provides high-performance single- or multiple-channel visualization of synthetic environments, dynamic moving models and special effects, and is delivered with extensive 3-D content libraries of more than 5,300 models.

The Army uses VRSG in its Shadow Crew Trainer, and in Grey Eagle, Aerosonde, and Hunter trainers in portable, classroom and embedded configurations. A key feature of VRSG is its ability to stream real-time HD-quality simulated UAV video with KLV metadata using the H.264 protocol, which is indiscernible in composition from the actual sensor video feed. In this way, VRSG is used to mimic the thermal sensors that scan the terrain at night and depict objects based on their heat signatures.

“MetaVR has also become one of the largest suppliers of commercial licensed 3-D visualization software for UAV simulation training in the U.S. military, with nearly 2,000 active VRSG licenses used for UAV simulation in the field. VRSG is used in settings ranging from classroom training at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., and other sites to portable ground control stations in the field,” Smith said.

Since 2009, the Air National Guard (ANG) has been using VRSG in JTAC simulation training in various configurations, ranging from laptops to desktops and immersive training dome systems, to simulate the functionality needed for JTAC training in close air support (CAS) exercises. In addition to the ANG, Air Combat Command has purchased VRSG licenses for use in both desktop and dome JTAC training systems.

VRSG is used in three JTAC dome training solutions: the Advanced Joint Terminal Attack Controller Training System (AJTS) installed at the JTAC schoolhouse at Nellis AFB, Nev., and 20 other sites; the Immersive Close Air Support Simulator (iCASS) training system used at the U.K.’s JTAC schoolhouse, the Joint Forward Air Control Training and Standardisation Unit, Royal Air Force Station Leeming, U.K. Early this year, Naval Air Station Fallon, Nev., began using VRSG in its Combined Arms Virtual Environment (CAVE) training dome and desktop systems for the simulation portion of the JTAC qualification course at the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center. As in the other dome systems, the VRSG visual channels in the CAVE system provide OTW and sensor views for the dome, instructor station and role-player stations, as well as views for full-motion simulated UAV sensor video feed for external targeting information on a ROVER-type device, and laser range finding and target designation in simulated military equipment.

The coupling of VRSG with Battlespace Simulations’ (BSI’s) Modern Air Combat Environment (MACE), used in all three training dome simulators listed above, is also at the core of the BSI/MetaVR JTAC desktop training simulator. This low-cost desktop simulator is used for training JTACs at Air Force Special Operations Command, Air Combat Command, and Air National Guard units.

This privately funded COTS solution enables JTACs to train on a virtual battlefield with CAS interfaces.

“In the case of training JTACs, instead of requiring the availability of multiple aircraft, with trainees traveling to a training site from 10 | MT2 20.6

many different locations, trainees can train on a virtual range in the U.S. or on a virtual site of any location in the world, independent of weather and their real-world location while conserving airframe hours,” Smith said.

Life Cycle Costs Rockwell Collins earlier this year introduced the EP-8100 image generator, which is designed to reduce life cycle costs and preserve existing customer investments in host interfaces and synthetic environments. It and the previously released EP-80 both run the same EP2 run-time software.

“The common application of the run-time software across multiple IG platforms allows customers to mix IGs at various price and performance points for different aspects of the same simulation exercise without requiring additional host integration,” Gibbs said.

Unlike PC-based image generators, the EP-8100 product line is based on graphics technology designed by Rockwell Collins. This design allows for simulation solutions that are customizable for each customer and that can be rapidly updated in the factory, in the integration center or in the field. Updates can be made at any time to support customer schedules, and do not require a commercial vendor update of graphics cards or drivers to get new features.

The company’s products are designed to address the military’s hardware obsolescence and life cycle support issues, Gibbs emphasized. The EP-80 image generator, for example, uses commercially available graphics cards, which offer the advantage of quick technology advancement funded by the gaming industry, even as they create obsolescence management challenges for the military simulation market. The high-performance EP-8100, on the other hand, is designed for the long life cycles required by the military simulation market, with critical technology availability in excess of seven years.

Another company in this field is VT MÄK, whose line of visual products includes VR-Vantage IG. “MÄK has always promoted a COTS-based approach to delivering technology to our government and industry customers,” according to Rob Hamilton, marketing communications specialist for the company. “We have always believed that there is a place for a flexible option that lets customers build the simulation with their own priorities in mind. Flexibility begins with a product that is designed from the ground up as an API, so you can customize and extend the system to achieve the balance you desire. Flexibility used to come with some compromise—in the past, a flexible option couldn’t give you the content of a quality-prioritized system or the frame rate of a performanceoptimized system.

“VT MÄK recognized this, and we have developed VR-Vantage software that provides the flexible IG solution—fully flexible software that is capable of 60 Hz performance on 4K displays well as a stunning array of content and an agile terrain strategy to satisfy any point on the quality–performance scale. We take advantage of graphics-rendering technology that is subsidized by the gaming industry and deliver it in a completely customizable software framework,” Hamilton continued, adding, “With VR-Vantage, instead of being locked into what your vendor has prioritized, you have the freedom and control to tune the software to meet your specific needs for your particular simulation.” O For more information, contact MT2 Editor Hank Donnelly at hankd@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives for related stories at www.mt2-kmi.com.

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Industry creates integrated simulation systems to develop highly skilled controllers of joint air/ground attacks.

By Harrison Donnelly, MT2 Editor Close air support (CAS) personnel—who coordinate ground and air attacks to achieve maximum effectiveness while avoiding harm to civilians and friendly forces—are increasingly vital elements in joint operations as envisioned by military planners around the world. It is widely considered to be one of the most complex and critical jobs in the military.

Yet training forward air controllers (FAC), or joint terminal attack controllers (JTAC) as they are known in the U.S. military, is exceptionally difficult and expensive to do in a live environment.

As is true with many other aspects of military training, the demand and cost constraints for CAS training have spurred the use of simulation technology. Even there, however, the complexity of the systems involved has made it difficult for many organizations to put together their own complete training programs using “best of breed” components.

In response, a number of companies, including CAS specialists and simulation technology providers, have joined together to create integrated systems that combine simulation, eLearning and advanced classroom techniques to convey a solid foundation in needed skills, to be followed by a relatively brief period of live training for final validation. www.MT2-kmi.com

Integrated JTAC training systems currently on the market include: • Advanced Joint Terminal Attack Controller Training System (AJTS), developed by QuantDyn Corp. and incorporating technology from MetaVR, Battlespace Simulations Inc. (BSI) and other companies. The AJTS encompasses high-fidelity visual displays, geospecific visual databases, equipment emulators, and associated hardware and software.

The training system is designed to meet the requirements for unit training at air support operations squadrons and special tactics squadrons, and is accredited by the U.S. Joint Fire Support Executive Steering Committee memorandum of agreement and the NATO standardization agreement for replacing live training for control types 1, 2, 3 for both day and night, and for laser target designation with simulated military device. Throughout 2014 and 2015, QuantaDyn has been fulfilling a production contract for the installation of 21 AJTS at several Air Force Special Operations Command, Air Combat Command and Air National Guard units. An additional system was installed last year at the Adazi Military Base, Latvia.

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• Immersive Close Air Support Simulator (iCASS), developed by Close Air Solutions using technology such as Virtual Reality Scene Generator (VRSG) from MetaVR and Modern Air Combat Environment (MACE) from BSI. The system has been certified by the U.K. Ministry of Defence as ensuring that JTAC students receive the most realistic levels of scenario-based training.

• Joint Fires Integrated Training Environment (JFITE) from Cubic, which leverages the company’s Universal Immersive Training System as well as PC-based solutions from SDS International and Nova Technologies. Available for a variety of missions, the JFITE system is optimized for JTAC training.

“Technology can enable learning of processes and low-level skills, but not for the thinking task, and JTACs must be experts at problem solving. We take the software advancements made by MetaVR and Battlespace Simulations and exploit them to their maximum potential for the purpose of immersive training.”

Terrain Realism

In a close air support simulation exercise, the virtual environment must have a high degree of terrain realism, and the ability of an image generator such as MetaVR’s VRSG to handle vast geospecific terrain and present it accurately from air to ground, with believable, detailed ground-level activity, is vital for training effectiveness.

Joint Attacks MetaVR’s round-earth Metadesic terrain format was originally based on customer needs for whole-Earth coverage The growing need for trained JTAC personnel in a training database, explained W. Garth Smith, springs from the central role that close air support and president and co-founder. “A credible JTAC simulation joint fires play in modern military thinking. The conincludes manned aircraft and UAVs, operating at disflict in Afghanistan, for example, saw a total of 123,665 tances and altitudes where earth curvature is a factor CAS sorties flown and 18,740 weapons brought to bear in accurate line-of-sight calculations. CAS simulations

by TACs between 2008 and 2012, while 50,471 sorties require very large areas at very high altitude down to and 2,768 weapons releases occurred in Iraq. the ground level.

Coordinating those missions requires special “VRSG’s physics-based IR sensor modeling caskills, noted Mike Squires, business director for Close pability has real-time computation of the IR sensor Air Solutions. image directly from the visual database, with a mate“The role of the FAC/JTAC is to coordinate ground Mike Squires rial classification system that emulates the proper and air assets to avoid politically damaging consequences to civilian and friendly forces,” Squires msquires@closeairsolutions.com heat signature of the terrain and the structures and people found on it,” Smith continued. “The higher the resolution of said. “Close air support, it can be argued, requires the highest levels of the terrain imagery, the better the resulting simulated sensor view. integration with ground forces, indirect fires and other assets. Trained With sub-inch resolution database imagery compiled from imagery soldiers and aircrew operating in high-stress environments must be captured with our own MetaVRC remote controlled aircraft, users can trained to think effectively before they engage the enemy, and to be create a physics-based IR profile of their terrain with a very high deproportionate with the weapons they choose to employ. gree of realism.”

“Training a soldier to think three-dimensionally is a challenge.

Comments collected by the company from users support the idea The understanding and exploitation of complex air space is often a that the technology achieves desired results. An instructor at a site new concept to the JTAC student. To be effective, he or she must be that uses VRSG and MACE in multiple JTAC simulators, for example, able to manage disparate air assets and ordnance in order to seamoffered this observation: “We can create immersive irregular warfare lessly integrate combined effects on the battlefield. The result of effecscenarios that help reinforce mandated Joint Mission Essential Task tive integration is civilians and friendly troops protected, with only the Lists, but more importantly, we can keep the students engaged and intended target engaged,” he continued. interested in their training. They learn the hard lessons early and The growing need is to reduce costs and supply flexible, customwith no risk to aircrew or to themselves. The systems can operate as designed training, while coping with difficulties in aircraft availability, stand-alone systems or can be networked together for more complex Squires observed. “The U.S. military, NATO and other national regulascenarios. They can be configured as cockpits or as JTAC trainers, tors are intent on accrediting the more comprehensive use of simulaJFO stations or OPFOR. We use these new JTAC simulators far more tion for training packages to address these issues. than we ever did before with our past simulator, and we’re introduc“The mantra today is use ‘the best tools for the job,’” he added. ing new devices and more complex CAS scenarios than we have had “However, there is as yet little capability, either within national air in the past.” forces or from sub-contractors, to provide the full package of JTAC One MetaVR customer summed up the benefits this way: “Seismic training using advanced simulation to reduce and supplement the use shifts are changing what is allowed in the JTAC training world. Live of aircraft for training.” training controls are being reduced in favor of simulation, partly out Simulation training for JTAC is highly effective when supported of necessity, but primarily due to the fidelity of the JTAC simulation by appropriate scenarios, Squires said. “Our training objective is to training technologies available now. And that fidelity has been driven place the student into a state of ‘flow’—complete focus and a loss largely by MetaVR and Battlespace Simulations. of inhibitions, where the trainee is operating very close to but not “Simulation training is not a 100-percent replacement for live exceeding his or her perceived maximum level of skill. Flow allows training, but now it is as good as we have a reason to expect it to be. maximum training transfer to occur. We prefer to talk about immerIt’s proven to be incredibly valuable as a near replication of a realsion versus technology; flow leads to true immersion, and immersion world close air support training environment. As result, all coalition leads to effective training.” partners are currently increasing their emphasis on close air support But while improvements in technology can help, they don’t simulation training,” stated a MetaVR and BSI customer. yet stand on their own for immersive training, he acknowledged.

12 | MT2 20.6

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“Close air support is one mission set where live-virtualconstructive training isn’t a unicorn; it’s achievable today with VRSG and MACE,” a JTAC instructor observed. “There are some caveats to that. You need aircraft telemetry data that encapsulates orientation as well as time-space-position information, but most military aviation training ranges have such data available. I think very shortly we’ll see a synthesis of live and virtual training, both for aircrew and for JTACs.”

Holistic Simulation BSI’s MACE, meanwhile, is a full-spectrum computergenerated forces/semi-automated forces (SAF) application capable of simulating a contested battlespace in the air, land and sea operational domains, as well as the electromagnetic spectrum. Over the last few years, MACE has been used in the A-10, F-16, AC-130 simulators, as well as in more than 60 JTAC simulators.

“MACE’s virtual controls have been designed to be video MetaVR VRSG creates a real-time screenshot of a virtual JTAC team with a LAV-25 A2 vehicle. [Image courtesy game-like,” explained Kenny Duck, BSI vice president, who of MetaVR] later, you can be an insurgent with an SA-7 missile attacking that added, “We know of no other competing product that can simulate the same F-16, which is now back under constructive control. battlespace as holistically as we are striving to do with MACE.” “MACE is the environment that moves or controls everything MACE development is currently being helped by the company’s realistically, as well as the instructor’s interface to create, execute JTAC clients: the Air Force Research Lab, with which it has a cooperaand modify the scenario,” Duck continued. “MACE’s true strengths tive research and development agreement; the Distributed Training are its ease of use, software performance, and full-spectrum abilities Operations Center and Distributed Mission Operations Center; and in land, air, naval and electronic warfare environments. The JTAC the Polygone Electronic Warfare range in Germany. simulator has to be able to realistically execute first-person firefights, One factor that separates MACE from its competitors is the ability tank battles, artillery, air-air engagements, air-ground engagements to simulate the electro-magnetic spectrum, which is key for simuand ground-ground engagements, all while operating in a contested lating contested battlespaces, Duck noted. “A fighter aircraft’s main electromagnetic environment. MACE can easily execute those types of beyond-visual-range sensor is its radar. Does your SAF articulate radar missions with hundreds if not thousands of entities.” O scans or simulate a simple ‘scan volume’? Or does it not even simulate the airborne radar at all? Can you define the radar beam, scan and pulse patterns?”

A second advantage is in the system’s ability to switch entity For more information, contact MT2 Editor Hank Donnelly at hankd@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives control between constructive (computer) and virtual (person-in-thefor related stories at www.mt2-kmi.com. loop), he added. “You can take control of and fly an F-16, and seconds

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MT2 20.6 | 13

DATA PACKETS Release Enhances Simulated Human Characters VT MÄK has released version 13.1 of its DI-Guy line of simulated human characters. The feature release adds many new characters, significant performance improvements, superior configuration and rendering enhancements to the entire product line. This release provides improved performance for large scenarios, with advancements to how entities are updated and reductions in the time needed to update entities that are far away or not in the scene. The company is now taking advantage of the Intel Threaded Building Blocks to multi-thread character updates. For users of Open Scene Graph, further improvements have been made in the way information is sent to the GPU, so there can be more characters in the image generator. MÄK is also taking advantage of advanced photogrammetry to produce high-fidelity characters

directly from photographs. This technique has produced many new heads and several new body types, which can be combined in DI-Guy to create hundreds of unique characters.

Enhancements Simplify Training Scenario Creation Lockheed Martin has launched Prepar3D v3, which allows users to build or experience advanced simulation environments and tools that simplify development and augment the training experience.

Prepar3D v3 enhancements simplify training scenario creation by employing a SimDirector drag-and-drop technique.

The user interface is also improved, with expanded gauge and panel training through Autodesk Scaleform support.

A new avatar mode enables users to experience the simulated environment in the third or first person for increased realism and situational awareness.

Prepar3D continues to partner with hundreds of third-party developers and partners in an active community that continuously enhances the software. Prepar3D v3 features memory and performance improvements to provide greater fidelity and increased realism.

Users can now utilize next-generation hardware to achieve a heightened experience that was never before possible.

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From novice learners to military service members, Prepar3D provides a realistic training environment for critical mission readiness. First launched in 2010, Prepar3D is a full earth simulation platform through which users can create training scenarios anywhere in the virtual world—from underwater to suborbital space. It offers immersive, experiential learning for private pilots, commercial organizations, militaries and academia. Prepar3D exists at the core of many of Lockheed Martin’s complex flight simulators.

3-D Virtual Software Trains for Emergency Anesthesia The 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 software couples an immersive 3-D training environment with an advanced physiology engine. It enables physicians, nurses, medics, and other emergency personnel to practice rapid sequence induction and moderate sedation, techniques for quickly sedating and intubating critically 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. The singleplayer PC-only software is free to all government employees with a valid .gov or .mil email address.

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Compiled by KMI Media Group staff

C-17 Training Site Supports Air Mobility L-3 Link Simulation & Training has commenced operations at a new C-17 Training System (TS) site located at Martinsburg Air National Guard Base (ANGB), W.Va. L-3 Link—prime contractor for the Air Force’s C-17 TS program—will conduct more than 750 simulator missions each year in support of the 167th Airlift Wing’s C-17 pilot, loadmaster and maintenance engine run technician training requirements.

“This new C-17 schoolhouse establishes the 15th training center operated by L-3 Link under the C-17 training system program and is the fourth new site we’ve activated since beginning the program in June 2011,” said Lenny Genna, president of L-3 Link. “Our team at Martinsburg is highly experienced, skilled and fully dedicated to providing training that comprehensively supports the 167th Airlift Wing’s global air mobility mission.”

Simulator Prepares for Shipboard Fire Fighting The new Advanced Fire Fighting (AFF) simulator for shipboard incidents from VSTEP enables participants to experience and train any incident onboard a ship firsthand, and is built to fully support and comply with Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) AFF courses.

The RescueSim AFF Simulator includes functionality, environments, emergency equipment and objects that are common to specific types of shipboard incidents and essential for STCWcompliant AFF training, including watertight doors, fire flaps and many more.

The compact and modular form factor of the simulator allows it to be used almost anywhere and can be set up according to training requirements and team size. A typical setup includes an instructor station and training stations for the on-scene commander and fire team leaders.

During simulator training, the participants in the simulator assess the situation and determine the best response strategy.

They then implement it and immediately observe the consequences of their decisions in real-time in the simulator. The simulator allows users to try out different response strategies for an incident in a safe, controlled environment.

An instructor is in full control during the training and can influence the scenario for the participants in the simulator during the exercise. Instructors can also build any on-board incident scenario using the instructor toolbox.

As an additional feature, the RescueSim AFF simulator can also be linked with VSTEP’s Nautis ship bridge simulators for additional incident command training of ship bridge personnel.

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Pilots, loadmasters and maintenance engine run technicians from Martinsburg ANGB will receive refresher, upgrade and currency training provided by L-3 Link instructors using classroom and hands-on operations training in a highly realistic C-17 weapon systems trainer and C-17 loadmaster station trainer. In addition, L-3 Link and C-17 TS team member TRU Simulation + Training will provide contractor logistics support and maintenance of the site’s training devices.

The C-17 TS is the largest aircrew training system within the U.S. Air Force’s Air Mobility Command, spanning both aircrew and maintenance training conducted at 14 installations in the United States and one at a Royal Australian Air Force base in Queensland, Australia. Annually, the C-17 TS trains more than 1,500 pilots and loadmasters using 23 variants of aircrew and maintenance training devices.

Unstablized Gunnery System Enables Live-Crew Training

The Armory-Based Unstabilized Crew Gunnery Trainer (UGT-C) from Raydon is the latest member of the UGT family and capitalizes on the 590 Unstabilized Gunnery Trainer-Individual (UGT-I) trainers who are 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.

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Defense Chairman

Q& A

Meeting the Challenges of a Dangerous World

Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.)

Chairman Senate Armed Services Committee John McCain entered the U.S. Naval Academy in 1954. He served in the Navy until 1981, achieving the rank of captain. A naval aviator, he was shot down on a bombing mission over North Vietnam in 1967, and was held as a prisoner of war until 1973.

McCain was elected to the House of Representatives from Arizona in 1982, and first elected to the Senate in 1986. He was the Republican Party’s nominee for president in the 2008 election.

He currently serves as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Q: Early in your tenure as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, you listed five key priorities for your work on the panel, beginning with oversight of national security policy. What do you see as the most effective ways of bringing about your goal of laying “as much groundwork as possible so that [the next president] can quickly adopt better national security policies”?

A: Over the past several months, the Senate Armed Services Committee has received testimony from many of America’s most respected national security experts and military commanders, who all agree that America is now facing the most diverse and complex array of crises since the end of World War II. While President Obama appears unwilling to change his national security policies, I believe that Congress, and the Senate Armed Services Committee in particular, can lay the groundwork for future presidents to lead more decisively and restore America’s military as the greatest fighting force in the world.

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which the Senate passed by a 71-25 vote, is an important step in that direction. The bill makes critical reforms that will enable our military to rise to the challenges of a more dangerous world. Specifically, it tackles acquisition reform, military retirement reform, personnel reform and headquarters and management reform. In addition, the bill identifies $10 billion of excess and unnecessary Pentagon spending and reinvests those savings in enhancing the military capabilities of our warfighters. I am currently working with chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) on the conference agreement of the bill, which I am confident will deliver the reforms needed to prepare our servicemembers for missions all over the world.

A: As I have made clear since being confirmed as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, it is my top priority to repeal sequestration, which continues to inflict lasting damage on the capabilities, readiness, morale and modernization of our military.

Each of our military service chiefs and countless national security experts have testified before the committee that if we continue on the dangerous path of sequestration, American lives will be put at risk.

Unfortunately, the Senate-passed NDAA does not end sequestration. The committee would absolutely have done so if the legislation was capable of it, but it is not. It is a policy bill that provides the Department of Defense and our servicemembers with the authorities and support they need to defend the nation. Though we could not end sequestration, the NDAA fully supports President Obama’s budget request of $612 billion for national defense, which is $38 billion above the spending caps established by the Budget Control Act of 2011. I continue to believe that putting an end to mindless sequestration should remain our top priority, and will keep working to repeal it once and for all.

Q: Your second priority was to end sequestration and put in place strategy-driven defense budgets. How would you define the latter concept, and what is needed to achieve it?

Q: A related priority is to curb wasteful military spending. Why is it so hard to eliminate apparently misguided projects, numerous examples of which you have identified within DoD?

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A: Unfortunately, due in part to the Pentagon’s exploding civilian workforce’s broken acquisition system, it has become more prone to wasting limited tax dollars on outdated and unnecessary programs. Between 2001 and 2011 alone, DoD spent $46 billion on at least a dozen programs that never became operational.

Providing for our common defense is the highest duty of the federal government, but at a time of crippling resources under sequestration, DoD cannot waste limited resources on unnecessary projects. As chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I am exercising rigorous oversight of Pentagon programs to ensure it better prioritizes and manages its budget so that we can direct savings to programs that enhance our military readiness. For example, the Senate-passed NDAA makes critical reforms to our acquisition system that demands accountability and introduces new incentives for our services to deliver programs on time and on budget. And we plan to hold several hearings in the coming months on costly Pentagon programs, such as the Gerald R. Fordclass aircraft carrier, which new estimates indicate is now $520 million over budget.

technologies, the Pentagon has grown larger, more complex and less innovative and more vulnerable to emerging global threats.

This is all due to a broken acquisition process, which takes too long and costs too much to access and modernize critical technologies.

We cannot hope to maintain a technological edge or deter our enemies if we continue on this dangerous path.

That is why the Senate Armed Services Committee worked to develop critical reforms to the defense acquisition system. The bill establishes a new streamlined process for rapid prototyping and rapid fielding within two to five years. It also streamlines the process for buying weapon systems, services and information technology by reducing unnecessary requirements, reports and certifications. And it establishes an expert review panel to identify unneeded acquisition regulations. Most importantly, the bill demands greater accountability and creates new incentives for the services to deliver projects on schedule and on budget.

Q: Why do you think the defense acquisition system has failed, and how would you describe your overall approach to your fourth priority, acquisition reform?

Q: After three decades, what is your assessment of the management system created under the Goldwater-Nichols reforms, and do you think that law needs to change in order to achieve your goal of improving the structure, roles and missions of civilian and military organizations within DoD? What would you expect to see from these changes if implemented?

A: In the last decade, while America’s adversaries have been investing in modern weapons systems and increasingly sophisticated

A: The Goldwater-Nichols reforms that Congress enacted 30 years ago required increased collaboration among the services that at

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the time were revolutionary and greatly needed. However, there remain serious questions about how Goldwater-Nichols has been implemented over the last three decades and the unintended consequences that may have resulted. In addition to introducing new reforms as part of the Senate-passed NDAA, I am also using my chairmanship to exercise oversight of these roles, structures and missions and identify reforms that will enhance the readiness of our military.

Q: Will those and other changes in acquisition prevent the types of massive program cost overruns on major defense systems that you have repeatedly criticized over the years?

A: While I believe these reforms will help to change the culture of waste within the Pentagon, there is much more that needs to be done to reign in the unacceptable cost overruns that have plagued DoD over the years. The fact is, many of our military’s challenges today are the result of years of mistakes and wasted resources. According to one recent study, the department spent $46 billion between 2001 and 2011 on at least a dozen programs that never became operational. In today’s vast acquisition bureaucracy, where personnel and project managers cycle through rapidly, everyone and no one is accountable for such cost increases and wasted resources. That’s why the Senate-passed NDAA includes major changes in the acquisition process, providing the service chiefs with greater decision-making authority while

also increasing accountability. By introducing greater accountability, I believe we can start to make serious progress and cutting unnecessary spending and reinvesting limited dollars into successful programs.

Q: What should DoD be doing to encourage industry innovation and maintain the U.S. lead in military technology?

A: Our broken defense acquisition system and stifling bureaucracy has forced many commercial firms to choose not to do business with DoD. That has limited our access to the most sophisticated technologies that can modernize our capabilities and give us an edge over our adversaries. As chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I have made it a priority to change this culture and start making it easier for innovative businesses in Silicon Valley and across the U.S. to work with the Pentagon.

The Senate-passed NDAA includes significant reforms that would do just that by incentivizing commercial innovation and removing barriers to new entrants into the defense market. By adopting commercial buying practices, the bill makes it easier for non-traditional firms to do business with the Pentagon. The bill also ensures businesses are not forced to cede intellectual property developed at their own expense to the government. Furthermore, the bill expands rapid acquisition authorities to cut through red tape and better support U.S. military operations around the world.

The bill also streamlines the process for buying weapon systems, services and information technology by reducing unnecessary requirements, reports and certifications. In addition, the NDAA seeks to reinvigorate the acquisition workforce by expediting the hiring of STEM professionals and STEM-qualified veterans. There is much more that we can do to improve the relationship between Silicon Valley and Washington, but I believe these reforms are important steps in the right direction.

Q: You and Senator Jack Reed, ranking member on the Armed Services Committee, wrote to Secretary Carter this spring following a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report faulting the training of UAS pilots. What steps would you like to see toward developing and implementing a coherent UAS organizational, manpower and training strategy?

Command, Control and Combat Systems Information and Security Technologies Cyber Security and Cloud Computing Technologies Simulation, Training and Test Services

A: I am deeply troubled by the GAO’s report that DoD has no standardized training program for UAS pilots and personnel. It is widely known that UAS are an essential element in America’s warfighting arsenal, and the department’s continued training failures, inconsistent standards and critical manning shortfalls threaten the capability and readiness of our servicemembers. As Ranking Member Reed and I wrote to Secretary Carter in May, we expect DoD to develop and implement a coherent UAS organizational, manpower and training strategy to ensure our combatant commanders get the highly trained and proficient operators of these systems they need to protect our warfighters and defeat our adversaries. O

For more information, contact MT2 Editor Hank Donnelly at hankd@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives for related stories at www.mt2-kmi.com.

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Virtual Training Aids Vehicle Maintenance

Providing hands-on training is a challenge, but technology can help students learn to be military mechanics.

By Karen E. Thuermer, MT2 Correspondent The trainer includes tutorial and interactive practice modes coverOne of the top priorities of maintaining the U.S. military’s ground ing the fuel module overview, pre-operation steps and fueling procevehicles is to make sure there are enough properly trained mechanics, dures. These procedures include filling, bulk unloading, recirculation but providing easy access to hands-on training has been a challenge. and dispensing.

New virtual technology developed by several companies, however, is “The application allows the instructors to cover the material in making vehicle maintenance training more accessible and effective. four hours rather than taking two days,” Ariotti explained. “Most of Accessibility was one of the top issues for Oshkosh Defense, for all, students are engaged. Each student has a copy of the application example, when it needed to train students on the fuel transfer procerunning on a laptop, allowing them to work through the procedures dures for the M978 HEMTT tanker truck. on their own.”

“Having access to live equipment for demonstration purposes is a For the Army, DiSTI’s solution was chosen for Phase IV updates challenge on many fronts,” remarked Scott Ariotti, director of global to the Stryker Maintenance Training System. “These updates add our marketing for DiSTI, which worked with Oshkosh on the program. “If interactive 3-D technology to the training devices for the purposes you do have access to live equipment, by some miracle, it’s probably of diagnosing and troubleshooting problems on the not a lot and what training you can do to it is limited.

Stryker mobile gun system,” he said.

On-vehicle training in this instance is limited to crowdThe materials cover more than 100 lessons. DiSTI ing the students around the equipment and lecturing is performing these trainer updates, along with subthem on how to carry out a particular procedure.” contractor Rockwell Collins, while preserving the Purpose-built hardware training devices don’t allegacy training capabilities. leviate the accessibility problem, Ariotti suggested.

“What’s unique about our offering is the holis“They’re very expensive to procure, so the number tic approach we take to the virtual environment deof units is limited, and they typically have a narrow velopment,” Ariotti said. “Today our industry seems scope of functionality. They also have a tendency to be enamored with game engines. While game to break over time, leading to further shortages and engines provide some phenomenal rendering capalogistical headaches.”

Scott Ariotti bilities, they are essentially just the end-result of the Oshkosh Defense also found that after reviewing sariotti@disti.com development.” more than 300 PowerPoint slides depicting vehicle Over the past decade, DiSTI has refined a comprehensive developfunctions and procedures, students would still gather around a truck ment process and produced a series of supporting tools for creating that was destined for customer delivery. these environments, and late last year announced the commercially “Fuel transfer is a hazardous procedure and therefore could not availability of the latest version of this tool suite, VE Studio. be conducted as part of the class,” Ariotti said. “And since the vehicle The first tool in the process automatically analyzes the requirewas destined for customer delivery, they could not pump an inert ments for the training device. This determines exactly what needs to fluid, such as water, through the system. So this live portion of the be built, modeled and simulated, as well as what doors to open, cables class consisted of using the truck as visual aid. This method frusto probe and components to remove. These data are stored in DiSTI’s trated the instructors because they knew students were not engaged Fidelity Matrix relational database and becomes the central repository with the materials and it took four times longer to train them than for the project. Graphics artists and other content developers feed this it should have.” repository with 3-D models, 2-D support equipment, behaviors and constraints as dictated by the requirements.

Virtual Environments Automated build tools read from the repository and generate either nightly configuration managed builds or incremental localized Oshkosh Defense was one of DiSTI’s first customers in vehicle updates for graphics artists to verify their new content “on the fly” maintenance. Since 2005, DiSTI has been creating virtual environin the environment. The final piece is automated regression testing, ments for use in maintenance training applications, particularly for which automatically runs against the nightly builds and reports back virtual training devices. The company primarily works with prime any discrepancies to personnel so they can take appropriate action. contractors to produce the 3-D virtual environment that serves as the Rather than running an ad-hoc environment in a game engine, primary student interface in the completed training system. Other DiSTI produces a fully tested and verified environment with traceabiltimes, as in the case of Oshkosh HEMTT Virtual Trainer and the Army ity back to the source requirement that drove its development.

Stryker mobile gun system, DiSTI acts as the prime.

“In conclusion, virtual maintenance training is solving that ac“In the case of the Oshkosh HEMTT Virtual Trainer, we developed cessibility challenge,” Ariotti stressed. “That’s because every student a comprehensive 3-D application that replaced the 300 PowerPoint can have their own virtual vehicle to work on, either in stand-alone or slides described earlier,” Ariotti said. www.MT2-kmi.com

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in a team-training mode. They don’t have to crowd around a vehicle and crane their necks to see what the instructor is talking about.”

Going forward, Ariotti contended, industry needs to push this material out beyond the physical schoolhouse and take it to where the learners reside.

“The challenge is that the fidelity to which these virtual environments are built often requires a gaming-level desktop computer, which is not something everyone has ready access to,” he said.

“In the past year, DiSTI has worked closely with Amazon and its new AppStream service, which serves up highly intense 3-D applications through the cloud and delivers them like a streaming movie,” he continued. “So now, any network-enabled device has the capacity to run one of these intense 3-D maintenance training applications. That’s a powerful ‘plus’ in the accessibility column and one that will become more prevalent in the future.”

Expanding Access

Heartwood helps mechanics and operators learn complex procedures by allowing them to practice on equipment virtually via 3-D interactive training applications. [Image courtesy of Heartwood]

Following the level of repair analysis framework used in the Department of Defense, the company’s virtual training applications typically fall into three levels of maintenance training:

• Organizational maintenance: quick turnFor Neil Wadhawan, vice president and co-foundaround, remove-and-replace and repair-in-place er of Heartwood, limited access to equipment is a procedures productivity killer. “At any given time, only a hand• Intermediate maintenance: thorough ful of trainees can train on the physical vehicle, and diagnostic testing and repair that, too, only after they have traveled to the facility,” • Depot-level maintenance: equipment overhauls he said. “Increasingly, training instructors want the and modification procedures. students to be familiar with the vehicle systems before they get there, and thus be more engaged and “What makes Heartwood unique is that we have productive at the live training session.” built our training technology framework to be fuVehicle maintenance technicians could have ture-adaptive for most third-party integration,” he Neil Wadhawan learned routine and troubleshooting procedures forsaid. “This means we can author the content once— mally in a classroom or a facility environment a few neil@hwd3d.com and deploy from classroom to learning management years ago, Wadhawan said. “But it’s critical to refresh system to mobile to virtual reality to augmented reality—all from that knowledge consistently without causing extensive disruption the same content code base. While these platforms may not be a to schedules or incur high costs. There is no escaping the fact that priority now, the tide turns fast and we want our customers to be on-the-go access to training content on Web and mobile is going to ready, not surprised.” be a priority moving forward.”

Wadhawan stressed that Heartwood’s vehicle maintenance trainTo properly train mechanics on maintenance of U.S. military ing is interactive, portable and scalable. ground vehicles, Heartwood helps operations and maintenance “Our technology enables the training course to be constantly acworkers learn complex procedures by allowing them to practice on cessible, allows the student to practice virtually, and can instantly equipment virtually, via 3-D interactive training applications. be deployed globally,” he said. “This empowers companies and orga“This fully interactive virtual training provides a modern-day alnizations to accelerate user learning, reduce operaternative to training manuals, videos, passive e-learntion and maintenance training costs and decrease ing and hands-on experience that enables the user to the need for expensive live training.” learn by doing anytime, anywhere, on any platform,” Wadhawan said.

Heartwood offers classroom training for assemLearning Environments bly and disassembly and step-by-step procedures; selfpaced lessons on Web and mobile, often re-purposed Participants in military training programs have as just-in-time and on-the-job performance aids; a lot to learn in a limited amount of classroom time, testing and evaluation modules whereby students noted Dave McLin, operations manager-ground perform the procedures on virtual equipment, resulttraining systems for CAE USA. “Meeting this chaling in a pass/fail percentage; and checklist apps for lenge requires new approaches to training that inDave McLin quick reference to procedural steps. clude repurposing existing training content, making “The unique factor at Heartwood is that all the david.mclin@caemilusa.com training content available on-demand outside the above modes of training are deployed from the same content code classroom and incentivizing students to invest their time in such base, which is authored just once,” Wadhawan said. training by, for example, providing college credits,” he said.

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CAE’s virtual maintenance training systems provide learning environments that allow instructors and students to maximize training effectiveness through the use of virtual simulations and interfaces to tactical vehicle and diagnostic software, McLin said. Such interfaces provide high-fidelity simulations of key vehicle systems, without requiring the presence of the actual, often very expensive, vehicle itself. Knowledge gained in such an environment, particularly for “learning by doing” tasks, readily transfers to the actual vehicle.

CAE has successfully delivered maintenance trainers for the Army’s Multiple Launch Rocket System, High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System, Bradley fighting vehicle and Abrams main battle tank.

CAE’s maintenance trainers support system familiarization, use of technical manuals, fault di- DiSTI creates virtual environments for use in maintenance training applications, such as ones about Army Stryker vehicles.

[Image courtesy of DiSTI] agnosis, test equipment and remove-and-replace At a macro level, simulation offers a number of benefits, notatasks. CAE’s maintenance trainers use interactive 2-D and 3-D virbly cost advantages that cannot be ignored in today’s constrained tual environments to provide high-fidelity training in maintenance defense budget environment. “The increased cost of fuel, environprocedures. mental impacts and significant wear and tear on weapon systems all “The virtual environments look, act and sound like the acpoint to the greater use of simulation for training, and that includes tual vehicle, and allow the student to concentrate on mastering maintenance training in addition to operator training,” he said. the required cognitive skills in a safe, cost effective environment,” remarked McLin. Each maintenance trainer consists of several student stations Tiers of Training and an instructor station that communicates via a local area network. CAE introduced the concept of a virtual maintenance trainer CAE solutions offer different tiers of training, from beginner to in the mid-1990s, and has continued to update and improve the advanced. The company’s maintenance trainers provide a range of underlying technologies. scenarios, and instructors can select and assign scenarios appropriAccording to McLin, CAE’s vehicle maintenance training soluate to the training needs of individual students. tion is unique in that the same core simulation software can be used “CAE’s approach is to select the appropriate training media across different vehicle families. for optimum training effectiveness,” McLin said. “The technical “CAE believes that maintenance training is critical to ensuring solution, whether that is a virtual system on the desktop or a lifehigh-readiness rates for complex and heavily digitized ground comsize physical replication of vehicle, is therefore subordinated to the bat systems, which often operate in challenging conditions and tertraining objectives.” rain,” he said.

A desktop virtual maintenance trainer can be very effective to Designed to accelerate learning along a continuum, CAE’s veprovide system knowledge, functional representation and troublehicle maintenance training solutions situate learners in immersive shooting scenarios for maintenance technicians, he observed. But content where they will familiarize, acquire, practice and validate the basic manual skills of using maintenance or diagnostics tools or critical skills in a way that leverages guided experiential learning. support equipment may need to be demonstrated and performed on “These simulations are optimized to efficiently train multiple a representative physical device for maximum training effectiveness. critical tasks and emphasize learning by doing, thus minimizing “CAE’s vehicle maintenance training solutions often combine development costs while ensuring training requirements are met,” virtual and hardware-based training media as required to meet the McLin emphasized. specific training objectives of the end-user customer,” he said.

One of the challenges in developing this type of technology lies CAE’s future programs will include supporting the Army Learnin obtaining the vehicle-specific data needed to create high-fidelity, ing Model and reaching out on an ongoing basis with foreign functional simulations. “Original equipment manufacturer data is customers. often not available or is prohibitively expensive,” he said.

“While dedicated classrooms will be a staple of maintenance To deal with this challenge, CAE has developed processes and training, we envision providing students with the ability to access methods for collecting the needed data from an actual vehicle. maintenance training content outside the classroom on various platMcLin outlined the benefit of CAE’s maintenance training soluforms and locations,” he said. “Providing the ability for instructors tion in reduced life cycle costs for institutional centers of excellence, to repurpose classroom training materials for use in other venues along with more efficient training. and platforms will help maximize training efficiency and improve “Maintenance trainers reduce life cycle costs by reducing the the return on investment.” O number of tactical vehicles (and associated costs) required to support maintenance training activities,” he said. “Training is more efFor more information, contact MT2 Editor Hank Donnelly at hankd@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives ficient because students can learn and practice in a classroom that for related stories at www.mt2-kmi.com. can support a much higher instructor-student ratio.” www.MT2-kmi.com

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COMMAND PROFILE

Naval Education and Training Command Learning Centers The Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) is the largest shore command in the Navy, providing ready, relevant learning and education support that literally touches every sailor in the Navy. NETC provides training and educational support via traditional classroom training and through virtual courses accessible electronically.

From boot camp to individual skills training, advanced team training and professional certifications, the NETC team has locations around the world. At any given moment, there are more than 31,000 officer, enlisted, foreign military and government civilian students enrolled in over 4,500 different courses at more than 220 NETC activities and detachments. In fiscal year 2015 there were more than 157,000 graduates.

Manned primarily by select fleet sailors and Marines who return to the schools bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience, the training commands live up to the NETC motto: “Fleet Readiness Starts Here.”

The NETC training construct is based on 12 learning centers around the country with mission-specific schools that support essential tasks identified as requirements by the fleet. The centers use a blended solution that combines classroom instruction with hands-on experience in labs, as well as simulators and trainers. The following are brief overviews of center operations.

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Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training (CNATT) CNATT, the largest of the NETC’s learning centers, is based in Pensacola, Fla., with sites located throughout the U.S. and Japan.

CNATT is responsible for curriculum, educational tools, developing training solutions and professional development for: 19 Navy enlisted aviation ratings, enlisted aviation professional apprentice career track, aviation maintenance officers, aviation ordnance officers, aviation fuels, aircraft launch and recovery equipment and crash and salvage. They also oversee initial training for student naval aviators and naval flight officers, student naval flight surgeons and equivalent Marine Corps aviation officers before they transition into actual flight training. Eighty Marine Corps enlisted military occupational specialties are also trained through CNATT schools.

Center for Surface Combat Systems (CSCS) Located in Dahlgren, Va., CSCS provides the specialized training for officer and enlisted sailors required to tactically operate, maintain and employ shipboard and shore-based weapons, sensors and command and control systems. This includes the Aegis Ashore Team Trainer, developed by CSCS, working with the Surface Training www.MT2-kmi.com

Systems Program Office at the Naval Sea Systems Command and Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division. The trainer support crews operating the new Aegis Ashore Missile Defense System, which was installed at Naval Support Facility Deveselu, Romania, earlier this year. CSCS also provides the fleet with highly trained officers and enlisted fire control men, electronic technicians, interior communications electricians, sonar technicians (surface), gunner’s mates, mine men, operations specialists, and boatswain’s mates to support integrated air and missile defense, undersea warfare/anti-submarine warfare, mine warfare, Navy integrated fire control-counter air, and seamanship operations.

Center for Information Dominance (CID) CID, located in Pensacola, Fla., leads, manages and delivers Navy and joint-force training in information operations and information technology, including creating and maintaining computer systems and networks. The center is also the lead for naval cryptology and intelligence training. The heart of cyber training for the maritime forces, CID works closely with U.S. Fleet Cyber Command and deploying units to ensure sailors and Marines are provided with the latest training to support their mission. mobile training teams (MTT) also support training for carrier strike group and amphibious ready group information dominance teams prior to deployments, ensuring they are ready to provide leadership predictive analysis in support of missions. The Center for Language, Regional Expertise and Culture

An information systems technician student at the Center for Information Dominance learns with the artificial-intelligence-based Digital Tutor. [Photo courtesy of U.S. Navy/by Thomas Seith]

is a directorate within CID that provides individual training as well as MTTs to deploying units, ships and squadrons preparing to participate in maritime partnership missions or combat deployments.

Surface Warfare Officers’ School (SWOS) SWOS in Newport, R.I., is the hub for surface warfare training for officers and enlisted personnel. Their courses cover surface navigation, firefighting and damage control, seamanship and ship handling skills. They also train sailors in the use of air defense, information

N AT I O N A L T R A I N I N G A N D S I M U L AT I O N A S S O C I AT I O N WWW.IITSEC.ORG u NOVEMBER 30–DECEMBER 4, 2015 u ORLANDO, FL

INTERSERVICE/INDUSTRY TRAINING, SIMULATION & EDUCATION CONFERENCE FORGING THE FUTURE THROUGH INNOVATION

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14,000 Attendees

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500 Exhibitors

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150 Sessions

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60 Countries, over 1,850 International Delegates

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operations, undersea warfare and expeditionary warfare. Engineering courses focus on the capabilities, use and maintenance of ships engines and auxiliary and electrical systems. SWOS also conducts courses for prospective commanding officers, executive officers, department heads, navigators and division officers. Enlisted training includes apprentice, journeyman and master-level sailors such as electrician’s mates, damage control men, enginemen, hull technicians and quartermasters.

Submarine Learning Center (SLC) The SLC in Groton, Conn., develops and delivers submarine individual and team training to achieve Undersea Warfare Enterprise mission readiness and undersea warfare superiority.

SLC is accountable for all undersea curriculums, training delivery methodologies, and for developing and maintaining professional development continuums for all submarine warfare officers and enlisted ratings to include electronics technician (communications and navigation), fire control technician, sonar technician, machinist’s mate (auxiliary and weapons), missile technician and all nuclear training ratings. They also provide specialized submarine training for service support and medical specialists such as culinary specialists, yeomen and hospital corpsmen. During the summer of 2015, the first enlisted women began attending training at the Naval Submarine School in Groton in preparation for duty in submarines.

Center for Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Diving (CENEODDIVE) CENEODDIVE in Panama City, Fla., provides oversight and control of the career progression of Navy EOD technicians and divers.

The two main CENEODDIVE learning sites are the Naval School of Explosive Ordnance Disposal at Eglin AFB, Fla., and the Naval Dive and Salvage Training Center (NDSTC) in Panama City. The EOD School trains members of the U.S. military services, partner nations and other government agencies in high-risk environments to qualify as explosive ordnance disposal technicians. This includes specialty training in defeating IEDs. The Dive School trains military divers from all services and more than 1,200 students train each year in 23 courses. Students include candidates for submarine SCUBA, Navy deep sea divers, Seabee underwater construction divers, joint service diving officers, explosive ordnance disposal officers, diving medical technicians, diving medical officers, Army engineer divers, Marine Corps combatant divers, Coast Guard divers and Air Force pararescue operators and combat controllers. A limited number of U.S. law enforcement and government agency students, as well as those from allied and coalition nations, also train at NDSTC. CENEODDIVE recently developed and implemented three new courses of instruction—joint diving officer, MK16 underwater breathing apparatus and surface supplied mixed gas diving—in response to requests from the fleet and field in accordance with its single manager responsibility for joint military diving technology and training.

Center for Security Forces (CENSECFOR) CENSECFOR, located in Virginia Beach, Va., prepares naval security force personnel to meet the training requirements for antiterrorism, security and force protection fundamentals for security 24 | MT2 20.6

A CNATT instructor and trainee study safety wire techniques. [Photo courtesy of U.S. Navy/by Bruce Cummins]

officers, enlisted master at arms and selected others. It also provides basic expeditionary warfare combat skills training to support rapidly deployable and agile expeditionary forces to warfare commanders in support of maritime security operations around the world. Additionally, CENSECFOR provides “code of conduct” training specific to personnel serving in positions designated as having a high risk of capture, to impart the necessary knowledge, skills and techniques for surviving behind enemy lines, evading enemy capture, resisting exploitation and escaping from captivity. Adding additional skills to fleet commands, the center also provides visit, board, search and seizure courses. Sailors are taught tactical team movements, boarding, climbing and rappelling techniques, self-defense tactics, and weapons handling to prepare them for interdiction of pirates, smugglers or terrorists at sea. The CENSECFOR trains more than 28,000 students each year at 14 locations across the U.S. and around the world.

Center for Service Support (CSS) CSS in Newport, R.I., provides sailors in the naval administration, logistics, culinary, music and media services the knowledge and skills needed to support the fleet’s war-fighting missions. Enlisted ratings include culinary specialists, logistics specialists, musicians, yeomen, mass communication specialists, personnel specialists and ship’s servicemen. Officer training supports Supply Corps officers attending www.MT2-kmi.com

the Naval Supply Corps School in Newport, and public affairs officers who attend the joint training provided through the Defense Information School at Fort Meade, Md.

Center for Seabees and Facilities Engineering (CSFE) CSFE, located in Port Hueneme, Calif., develops and delivers training solutions for Civil Engineer Corps (CEC) officers, enlisted construction or Seabee ratings, Navy facilities engineers and environmental professionals. The CEC Officers School provides professional training to facilities engineers, public works officers, naval construction force command elements and environmental professionals. Naval Construction Training Center (NCTC) Port Hueneme supports accession mechanic training for Navy and Air Force students, advanced training for all Seabee ratings and blasting and quarry and water well drilling. NCTC Gulfport, Miss., supports accession builder and steelworker training for Navy, Army and Air Force students and advanced training for all Seabee ratings.

Like other NETC commands, the training includes the use of technology when feasible to support classroom instruction. The Seabee school uses a PC-based welding simulator to teach how to maintain a proper arc, rod angle and speed while welding. The CSFE Detachment on Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., supports accession training for the equipment operator and engineering aide ratings and is hosted by the Army. The CSFE Detachment on Sheppard AFB, Texas, supports Seabee accession training for the utilities man and electrician ratings and is hosted by the Air Force.

of the community conducting modeling and simulation to monitor personnel numbers and capabilities. They also tailor positional leadership courses to senior enlisted personnel and senior officers preparing them to take on leadership roles in the fleet.

Engineering Duty Officer (EDO) School The EDO School, located in Port Hueneme, Calif., is dedicated to improving the professional proficiency of engineering duty officers through training in the research and development, acquisition, maintenance and modernization of ships and ship systems, combat and weapon systems, ordnance and electronic systems. EDO School serves as a focal point for the development of engineers, enabling them to apply practical knowledge and experience to integrate science, technology and design into affordable ships and systems. EDO School’s staff of eight convenes four basic courses and three senior courses during the year, each with an average of 22 students.

War-fighting readiness, innovation and efficiency are essential to maintaining modern and capable naval forces. Fleet readiness begins with the quality training at the learning centers of Naval Education and Training Command. O

For more information, contact MT2 Editor Hank Donnelly at hankd@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives for related stories at www.mt2-kmi.com.

Naval Chaplaincy School and Center (NCSC) The NCSC, located on Fort Jackson, S.C., trains chaplains and enlisted religious program specialists (RPs) to provide professional religious ministry in the sea services. All chaplains and chaplain candidates participate in the same seven-week course of instruction. They learn the fundamentals of providing religious ministry and support to those of their own faith, facilitating the religious requirements of those from other faiths, caring for all servicemembers and their families, including those subscribing to no specific faith, and advising the command in ensuring the free exercise of religion. RPs receive training in preparing devotional material, organizing faith-based events and maintaining religious records. They are also provided with the skills to serve as the personal security for Navy chaplains, who do not carry arms. At intermediate and advanced levels, chaplains and RPs return to NCSC for additional training and education designed to better equip them for increased responsibilities on the operational and strategic levels.

Center for SEAL and SWCC (CENSEALSWCC) The CENSEALSWCC, located in San Diego, Calif., is the learning center aligned to Naval Special Warfare Command, the maritime component of U.S. Special Operations Command. The center focuses on three lines of effort for SEAL (sea, air and land) and SWCC (special warfare combatant-craft crewman) personnel: professional development, advanced education and career management. CENSEALSWCC provides uniquely tailored training and professional development to more than 3,600 SEAL and SWCC operators. They work with the Naval Special Warfare Command on assessments of the strength www.MT2-kmi.com

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Warfighters’ Corner Highlights Training’s Impact As they marvel at the training and simulation technology breakthroughs on display on the show floor, attendees at the upcoming Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) in Orlando, Fla., will also have an opportunity to hear warfighters’ real stories about the impact of training.

Each day of the November 30-December 4, 2015, gathering will include “Warfighters’ Corner: From the Tip of the Spear,” a widely attended annual event that features recently deployed panel members from each military service.

The stories told during these 90-minute panels help bring realism to the fascinating and innovative training products highlighted on the I/ITSEC floor. Through these individuals, Team Orlando members and other attendees can gain an understanding of the impact of the training products and services they deliver. Panel members chosen by their respective services share their personal training experiences and reflect on whether it was or wasn’t effective and why.

Commander Robert “Diesel” Salvia of the Naval Air Warfare Center Training System Division, military deputy for cross-warfare programs, is a past participant in the Warfighters’ Corner panel.

He describes himself as a big advocate of the program, and feels it is important that I/ITSEC hosts the event to support its overall mission to showcase the newest and greatest training technologies created for the warfighter.

“The opportunity to hear stories directly from soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines sharing what they did, how they did it and how each training system prepared them helps us understand more clearly the importance of the Team Orlando mission and how we’re impacting them,” Salvia said. “They remind us why it’s critical to get it right.”

Not all deployments are created equal, but today’s military must be ready to deploy at a moment’s notice to anywhere in the world and for any mission—whether a peacekeeping effort, combat operations or humanitarian relief.

“Gone are the days when we trained for a single mission and deployed to perform that particular task,” explained Salvia. “Added to that, the equipment we rely on to achieve mission success has increased in complexity as well. All of this presents a challenge to deploy highly trained sailors capable of performing complex mission sets in a technically advanced environment.”

When Salvia was deployed, he was the commanding officer of a provincial reconstruction team in Afghanistan, facing many challenges as he worked to ensure his personnel were capable of not only operating in the environment, but also of excelling in it. During their three-month training, team members used simulators and training systems suited for various situations.

One of the training systems they used was the “Small Arms Virtual Trainer,” which provided a safe environment for those who had never fired a rifle or crew weapon. Users had the chance to 26 | MT2 20.6

familiarize themselves with the weapons and achieve a level of comfort prior to going to the range to shoot with live ammunition.

For more experienced soldiers, other immersive training systems were used with a higher level of decision-making scenarios to test their ability to adapt to the threat. At the conclusion of the training, the team possessed a wide range of ability and skills for “boots on the ground” combat scenarios and mounted patrols.

“The combination of all of these systems is what is needed to ensure that everyone, no matter their starting skill set, is trained adequately, challenged throughout the training, and ultimately sent forward ready to respond to any and all threats,” Salvia said.

Dan Torgler, deputy director for the Joint Training Integration and Evaluation Center, believes Warfighters’ Corner panelists help drive home the importance of training.

“It’s all about the warfighter, no matter what organization, because everybody has the same mission,” Torgler said. “If we don’t provide our warfighters the training they need and improve their readiness, we haven’t done our job. To have the opportunity to be able to hear the stories from the warfighters who have experienced the training firsthand, it’s really motivating as we look to move forward and continue to improve.”

Salvia said this feedback loop offers first-hand knowledge of how the battlefield has changed and also identifies what new challenges might need to be addressed. “For those who build the systems, this is where the rubber meets the road when it comes to training effectiveness.”

The session also allows military personnel to share how they overcame and adapted to new threats and previously unknown environments not addressed during their training. “Sharing that knowledge at I/ITSEC gives industry the opportunity to design training systems to fill those gaps,” Salvia said.

As an operator, Salvia never knew the effort involved in developing the training systems; he just asked for capabilities and they arrived. “Having now seen the tireless efforts of so many dedicated to ensuring the warfighters are getting the best training, I have a greater appreciation for our industry.”

“It is a great relationship that requires the technical expertise of so many, plus the operational experience of the warfighter to make sure that the training systems for tomorrow’s warfighters are the best they can be,” he said. “As the missions become more complex and integrated, and platform and weapons technology continues to increase, high-fidelity, immersive training systems that effectively match the technology to the required task will continue to be in high demand.” O

For more information, contact MT2 Editor Hank Donnelly at hankd@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives for related stories at www.mt2-kmi.com.

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MT2 RESOURCE CENTER Advertisers Index D-Box.................................................................................................................... 5 www.d-box.com Diamond Visionics............................................................................................... 4 www.diamondvisionics.com Grantham University......................................................................................... 13 www.grantham.edu/mae Havelsan............................................................................................................. 18 www.havelsan.com.tr Inert Products.................................................................................................... 25 www.inertproducts.com L-3 Link Simulation & Training........................................................................ 17 www.link.com Meggitt Training Systems..................................................................................... 1 www.meggitttrainingsystems.com MetaVR............................................................................................................... C2 www.metavr.com MilSim Asia........................................................................................................ C3 www.milsimasia.com NTSA - I/ITSEC Conference................................................................................ 23 www.iitsec.org SAIC.................................................................................................................... C4 www.saic.com Triangraphics..................................................................................................... 27 www.triangraphics.com

Calendar November 30-December 4, 2015 I/ITSEC 2015 Orlando, Fla. www.iitsec.org

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

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MT2  20.6 | 27

INDUSTRY INTERVIEW

Military Training Technology

Lenny Genna President L-3 Link Q: What is an example of your success in the military and what are some of your goals over the next year?

Q: Please describe Link’s history and evolution.

A: L-3 Link has long served the military training and simulation industry. In fact, 86 years ago, Ed Link filed a patent for his first “Pilot Maker” training device. Fast-forward to today, and we’re marking our 15th year as a division of L-3, which has enabled us to maintain strong investments in our military training business lines. To appreciate where we are today—a world leader in military flight simulation—it’s worth taking a look back at how we have evolved.

The Link organization made small, but significant, strides during our first 15 years in operation. During World War II, Link supported our war effort, producing 10,000 pilot trainers that were vital in training U.S. and allied pilots. Not only was this a proving ground for Link, but also it represented the creation of a new aviation simulation market.

Over the ensuing decades, Link’s training technologies would expand into other markets, including medical procedures, shipboard operations, civil aviation and space travel. From a company known for its unique simulation and training technologies, we became an organization that adapted COTS technologies to meet customers’ emerging program requirements. Today, we’re a world leader in fixed-wing, rotarywing and unmanned aircraft simulation and training that focuses both on individual and team training aimed at optimizing collective battlefield operations.

Q: What are some of your key products in the DoD training and simulation industry?

A: We provide our DoD customers with solutions ranging from high-fidelity immersive simulations to total training solutions. L-3 Link’s high-fidelity trainer solution employs our HD World integrated simulation product line. This solution combines high-resolution geo-specific databases and multi-spectral physics-based processing technologies with state-of-the-art image generation, sensor and out-the-window display systems. Our total training solutions provide adaptive immersive environments that can be deployed simulta28 | MT2 20.6

neously to any training medium. From delivering instruction via handheld devices to conducting in-flight training, we provide a full range of pervasive, persistent and accessible training options.

Q: What are some of the new training/ simulation technologies Link is developing for 2015?

A: L-3 Link’s portfolio represents solutions that include advanced training devices, comprehensive training system solutions and a full range of support services. Across this base of solutions, we continue to make strategic enhancements. Our investment in live-virtual-constructive (LVC) training, for instance, is designed to reduce set up time, provide the customer an opt-in/opt-out capability and deliver improved multi-level security between newer and older platforms participating in LVC exercises. From a virtual training standpoint, we’re providing crews and units with specialized training to help them successfully manage complexity, friction, chaos, confusion and clutter scenarios similar to those they’ll experience in operational environments.

Q: How are you positioned for the future within the U.S. military?

A: We have a strong presence on many of the nation’s leading manned and unmanned aviation platforms, including the F-16, F/A18, F-22, EC-130H, AH-64, UH-60, CH-47, UH-72, C-17, E-3, E-6B, T-1A, B-2, C-27J, E-8, MQ-1C Gray Eagle, MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper. Our goal is to strategically expand this footprint to include other U.S. military platforms.

A: Our primary successes have been the ability to maintain our market share in the U.S. military flight simulation market and broaden our presence on international training programs. For instance, we’re entering integration phases on three UH-60L operational flight trainers for the Royal Saudi Land Forces Aviation Command. We won the Royal Saudi UH-60L program in 2014, a year which also saw L-3 Link meet its ready-for-training milestones for two Pakistan Air Force F-16C aircrew training devices and deliver an F/A-18D tactical operational flight trainer to the Royal Malaysian Air Force. In 2014, we also announced an award from BAE Systems to develop the Hawk Oman training system for the Royal Air Force of Oman.

Regarding our near-term goals, we will continue to focus on our customers’ training requirements and develop disruptive technologies that deliver enhanced training capabilities. We are laser-focused on maintaining and growing our military training market share. To accomplish these and other goals, we’re putting a special emphasis on making L-3 Link a great place to work and look forward to our team’s ongoing contributions.

Q: How do customers benefit from Link’s varied resources and expertise?

A: We develop training solutions that improve mission and operational readiness. Our training solutions provide complex, immersive training environments that military services consider essential to conduct effective training. In fact, the environments we develop in the coming years will be so immersive that they will blur the lines between live and simulated training.

U.S. military services also are benefitting from total training system solutions we’re developing to remove barriers that inhibit learning. We’re blending courseware content with advanced simulation technologies to provide a full range of immersive, adaptive and accessible training options. O www.MT2-kmi.com

Sponsorship opportunities available

THE ONLY EVENT FOR THE MILITARY TRAINING, EDUCATION & SIMULATION COMMUNITY IN ASIA 2 days of leading content with keynote presentations from senior military personnel delivering perspectives from across the region The leading networking opportunity for industry to meet military from the region A unique platform providing attendees the opportunity to discuss developments in this evolving market A boutique exhibition showcasing latest innovations

Organisers of

Contact us on +44 (0) 20 7384 7788 or at team@milsimasia.com Find out more and register your interest on www.milsimasia.com

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At SAIC, we provide services and solutions to help position our military for mission success. To learn how we are redeďŹ ning ingenuity in the areas of cyber, intelligence, virtual training, and more, visit us at saic.com.

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