‘Virtual Collaboration’: Collective Mission Training to deliver real military effectiveness

On the ground the forward forces had identified a critical time sensitive target and were passing the targeting message to the pilot.  The pilot repeated the message, identified the indicated target and coordinated attack clearance with the forward forces.  The strike successfully neutralized the threat while complying with Rules of Engagement and minimizing the risk of collateral damage – there was no room for error.  

The pilot and forward forces had never even met, but scenarios like this were already second nature.  The tactics techniques and procedures that each participant would follow were already assured.  Each participant acted with precision, speed and efficiency because they’d rehearsed for collaborative missions just like this using secure simulated environments.

Welcome to Collaborative Combat ‘Synthetic Training’:  Delivering military effectiveness

This scenario is part of an approach to joint forces military training that increasingly blends the use of synthetic environments, or computer simulations, with live participants and real world content across multiple locations. Known as Live Virtual Constructive (LVC)  it allows mission rehearsal to be carried out in the most immersive manner, with participants able to interact with each other as they will during the real missions – thus truly training as they fight, but without real-world constraints.
Given the significant savings in costs, the payback comes quickly, but perhaps even more important is the increased value that can be gained by having the ability to rehearse for complex scenarios without observation in the increasingly restricted real-world environment. It’s a clear example of how training for Collaborative Combat can be delivered either locally or across wide area networks, bringing high quality training to where it is most needed.