MoD Information

Army unveils battle simulator

Thu, November 28, 2002

Source: Ananova

The British Army has unveiled the world's largest and most sophisticated battle simulator

British Army unveils world's largest battle simulator

Armed Forces Minister Adam Ingram opened the £250 million system, which is capable of training up to 700 soldiers a day in armoured warfare.

The Combined Arms Tactical Trainer, developed from software which has been used by US forces for a number of years, allows troops to hone their skills inside replica vehicles. Soldiers can pit themselves against a range of virtual enemies - or "live" against other combatants in a range of virtual landscapes from rolling European plains to harsh deserts. Looking around the vast simulator hall at its base in Warminster, Wiltshire, Mr Ingram said: "This state of the art simulator network provides an unprecedented level of activity - soldiers say the only thing missing is the smell of cordite.  "It's a case of Disney World - eat your heart out. But the serious side is that it provides our people for the realities of combat.  "While it is no substitute for exercises in the field, it ensures our forces go into live training better prepared and able to get the most out of it. 

The CATT simulators are split between two electronically linked facilities at Warminster and also at Sennelager, Germany - creating a network of nearly 170 vehicle simulators. The three training scenarios are linked to maps and based on terrain and buildings in Germany, the Nevada Desert and Salisbury Plain - on which the Warminster base edges. The latter's software even includes Salisbury Cathedral and Stonehenge.  After troops battle it out in the simulator hall - which is the size of three football pitches - the entire skirmish can then be played back to them in a lecture theatre for post-exercise analysis.