Training Technology
The debrief facilities in the CATT allow a full after-action review of all exercises, including dissection of individual incidents if required. The staff, emphasise that they are not necessarily the SMEs, but are there to coax the learning points out of the training audience. The CATT is a key part of campaign training and, in the words of one CO, who trained with his battlegroup at CATT and is currently deployed on operations in Afghanistan, provides “the most realistic training you will receive this side of deployment”.
Artillery On the other side of Salisbury Plain lies Larkhill, home of the Royal School of Artillery, and here can be found another approach to synthetic training, on a smaller scale, arrived at by a different route, but no less effective. The environmental, range requirement and cost (at about £1,000 per round) implications of artillery training mean that gunners have employed simulators as long as they have been available, and understand how to exploit them. However, historically these devices have been limited in their capability and inflexible in their employment; not any more. The RSA is responsible for the individual training of Joint Fires Integra-
tors for the Royal Artillery and Special Forces, all of whom must be proficient in the employment of both normal and precision artillery. Over 200 soldiers and officers are trained each year to be Fire Support Team commanders or assistants; demand and capacity are finely balanced. The simulators in use until a couple of years ago used an Afghan database specific to that equipment, which was not referenced to the actual terrain and was unsuited to anything more than basic artillery procedural training. It did not allow any integration with ISTAR, or friendly assets such as AH or CAS; the
The NEW online
Above The Light Gun Direct Fire Simulator. Image credit: Royal School of Artillery.
first time FST commanders used these specialist capabilities was either during MST or in theatre. The key to real progress in this area has been Bohemia Interactive’s VBS2, and more fundamentally, the way in which it is licensed. Following VBS2’s introduction with Australian and US forces, the UK MoD bought it in 2004 for use by the Royal Logistics Corps in
Simulation Training Directory
is now live
ISSUE 5.2011
E FRPE ANY
Register your company details COM G today on this fully searchable, LISTIN comprehensive listing of training, simulation and modelling products and services.
MS&T MAGAZINE
16
Register today
www.halldale.com/directory